Voices Carry
by ParchmentandQuill8
Summary: Leonard Snart thought his life was coming together. His alias, Captain Cold, was allowing him to commit whatever crime he wanted unchecked. Then, Sara Lance, the homicide detective assigned to apprehending him moved in across the hall, and with her a little girl with messy hair and shining eyes, and they remind Leonard that a put-together life might not be possible.
1. Chapter 1

**Yes I know, another kid fic. Fight me.**

* * *

"So what's happening at work today?" Lisa Snart asked her brother Leonard.

"I appreciate you calling larceny 'work'," Leonard replied.

"Hey," Lisa put her hands up, "it pays your half of the rent."

"And your half when you can't pay it."

Lisa rolled her eyes, "By the way, someone finally moved into the apartment across the hall."

"Am I supposed to care?"

"You're supposed to care long enough to say hello and then you can go back to ignoring them like all the other neighbors."

Leonard sighed dramatically and stood from the barstool he'd been sitting on.

"What are you doing?" Lisa asked.

"Going to say hello," Leonard gestured towards the door, "Isn't that what you wanted?"

Lisa shook her head in exasperation and followed him out of their apartment and to the door across the hall.

* * *

During this, Sara Lance was sorting through a cardboard box filled with clothes. She needed to leave for work soon and the shirt she'd planned on wearing was at the bottom of one of the many boxes she hadn't yet unpacked.

The process of moving into her new apartment was taking longer than expected, probably because she had to work at the same time. She'd been in her new apartment for two days now and the only unpacking she'd gotten to do was opening boxes when she needed to get something.

Just as she found the shirt (buried at the bottom of the box, just as she'd expected), she heard a knock on the door. She hurriedly pulled the grey v-neck t-shirt over her head and went to the front door.

She wasn't particular surprised that someone was at the door. Most of the neighbors on her floor had already stopped by to welcome her to the building, the exception being the residents of 3D — the apartment across the hall.

Sara unlatched the door and pulled it open. There were two people standing on the other side, a man and a woman, and judging by their similar faces, they were siblings.

"Hi," Sara said, leaning against the door.

"Hi," the woman replied, "I'm Lisa Snart from across the hall. This is my brother Leonard. We just wanted to say hello."

Sara looked the siblings over. Good genes ran in their family. They were both tall; the brother, Leonard, was at least a head and a neck taller than she was. They both had brown hair — Lisa's long, layers cascaded down her back, her brother's cropped and dotted with grey — and the same narrow, icy blue eyes and an expression on their faces that made them look permanently up to something.

Sara found it rather intoxicating, especially as Leonard's eyes met her own, giving her the feeling that he wasn't just looking at her, but reading her, understanding the inner workings of her thoughts before even she could.

She smiled.

"Well, thanks," she replied, "I'm Sara Lance. C'mon in."

Sara led Leonard and Lisa into her apartment.

"Sorry it's a bit of a mess, I haven't really had time to start unpacking yet," she apologized.

Lisa shrugged, "It's probably still better than ours."

"I wonder who's fault that is?" Leonard raised her eyebrows at his sister. Before Lisa could answer, he turned to Sara, "So what's a pretty girl like yourself doing in a neighborhood like this one?"

"Len!" Lisa rolled her eyes, "Ignore him. He's an asshole."

"No, it's okay," Sara replied, shrugging, "I'm here because it's cheap and it's pretty close to where I work."

"And where might that be?" Leonard asked.

"Down at the police precinct. I'm a homicide detective."

Leonard's eyes flashed suspiciously and Lisa sent a warning glare to her brother, daring him to say anything.

Leonard's criminal work happened under the cover of an alias, Captain Cold. That and a heavily hooded parka and goggles covering the majority of his face kept his true identity under wraps. If a CCPD detective hadn't yet made the connection, his disguise was clearly working.

"Detective, huh," Leonard finally said, "You must know Barry Allen."

Sara nodded, "Yeah, he comes along on some of my assignments and he works a lot of the forensics for my cases. How do you know him?"

"We go back a ways," Leonard replied cryptically.

If Leonard was being completely honest, he'd say that Barry Allen was one of the few people who knew who Captain Cold truly was, and the only reason he wasn't spilling was because Barry had his own secret identity, that of the red speedster, The Flash. However, Leonard was rarely completely honest, so he wasn't going to say anything.

Sara raised an eyebrow skeptically but before she could say anything, they heard the quiet pitter-patter of little feet.

"Daily bubble, Mommy!"

Leonard's head swiveled in time to see a little girl appear from a bedroom off the hallway. She looked remarkably like her mother, with big eyes a brilliant shade of blue. She had mop of thick, curly light brown hair that barely fell past her chin. Her nose was small and thin and turned up slightly at the end, She was dressed in a burnt orange jumper and cream colored blouse. On her sock-clad feet were a pair of shiny Mary Jane shoes.

Upon seeing the new people, she tucked herself behind her mother's legs.

"Don't be shy," Sara whispered, taking the girl's hand and pulling her out from behind her legs. She straightened and turned back to Leonard and Lisa, "This is my daughter, Avery. Avery, this is Leonard and Lisa. They live across the hall."

"Hi," Avery said quietly, her head tipped almost all the way up to look at the tall strangers standing in her living room

"Hi Avery," Lisa smiled, crouching down to Avery's level, "How old are you?"

"Four."

"Wow, that's so big!"

Leonard raised his eyebrows at his sister, although he wasn't exactly surprised by her behavior.

Lisa had always been good with kids, more so than Leonard at least. Kids always just seemed to like her more than him, and he didn't exactly blame them.

He tried to listen to the conversation between Avery Lance and Lisa, which he was sure was sickeningly sweet, but his eyes keep wandering to the girl's mother, Sara.

She was beautiful, Leonard couldn't deny that. She was dressed in a plain t-shirt and jeans, but the simplicity suited her. She was small, but built; he could see muscle lines on her bare arms. She and her daughter had the same deep turquoise eyes, but while Avery's eyes were wide and shining, Sara's carried a look of permanent suspicion that all cops shared.

He never would have suspected she had a kid. She was young, maybe the same age as Lisa; too young to have a four year old, especially since there was no evidence of the father anywhere.

Normally, finding out that a woman had a kid would send Leonard running, but for some reason, with Sara he didn't want to. That scared him, and if there was anything that _did_ make Leonard run, it was being scared.

And then something even worse happened.

Sara eyes flicked from her daughter to him and her gaze met his. Leonard froze. He wanted desperately to look away, but didn't want to be the one to break the eye contact. Thankfully, his sister unknowingly rescued him.

"What's a daily bubble?" Lisa said, pulling Sara's eyes off of his.

"It's something we've done every day for a while," Sara said, looking down at her daughter. She ran a hand over Avery's hair, "We make a really big bubble and see if we can beat our record for how long it lasts before it pops."

"Wanna see?" Avery asked, her head tipped back so she could look up at her new neighbors.

"Of course," Lisa exclaimed. She stood and followed Avery and Sara deeper into the apartment. Leonard reluctantly trailed behind. If he had known what "meeting the neighbors" really ensued, he may not have been so gung ho about getting it over with.

They stepped out onto the balcony, where the only furnishing was a metal table, on which was resting a large bubble wand and a plastic tupperware container filled with a soapy liquid. Sara lifted up Avery and sat her on the table, where she picked up the container and carefully removed the lid. Sara took the bubble wand and let it rest in the liquid momentarily. Then she lifted it and dragged it through the air. The bubble that was created was huge, bigger than the size of a beach ball. It seemed to bounce through the air, it's shape changing with the wind. Avery immediately started counting.

"One…"

Sara joined in for, "two…three…"

Even Lisa added her voice to the mix for, "four…five…"

And then, silently, it popped, leaving only a few drops of the bubble liquid hanging suspending in midair for a few seconds before they too disappeared, gravity pulling them towards the sidewalk below.

"Aww," Avery said, looking to the ground in disappointment.

"What's your record?" Lisa asked.

"Eleven seconds," Sara replied. Lisa nodded.

"It was nice meeting you," Leonard said, cutting off Lisa before she had time to start, "But I've gotta get to work."

"Yeah, I probably should head out too," Sara replied, "I have to get Avery to preschool. Thanks for stopping by."

Leonard nodded once, not breaking eye contact.

"It was really nice to meet you," Lisa added, "and if you ever need anything, we're right across the hall."

"Thanks," Sara smiled. She turned to Avery, "Say goodbye to Leonard and Lisa."

"Bye," Avery said quietly, her eyes still on the sky as if the bubble would suddenly reappear, falling out of the sky from the clouds.

* * *

Sara dropped Avery off at school and continued to the police precinct.

"Lance," her boss Joe West called as she exited the elevator, "How's the new place?"

"Good," Sara nodded, walking with Joe in the direction of her office, "Haven't even tried to start unpacking yet, but good."

"Avery's settling in well?"

"Yeah," Sara shrugged, "She was a little upset when she realized we wouldn't be seeing Grandma everyday, but otherwise she's fine."

"Good," Joe said, "That's good. Look, you know how I am. If something ever comes up and you need a day off, just let me know. I'll make it happen."

"Thanks Joe," Sara said appreciatively.

"No problem, Lance. Congratulations for doing something I've been trying to get Barry to do for a year," he went to leave her office, but turned at the door way, "Speaking of Barry, he's in his lab analyzing that evidence you found from the last Cold scene. He said he'll be down to go over it with you you as soon as he's done, so I'd say you've got, oh I dunno, an hour or so to kill before he's ready."

Joe left the room chuckling at his own joke. Sara sat behind her desk and switched on her computer. She was grateful for the spare time; she had something she had to do.

Sara pulled up the police database, the system that held information about nearly every citizen of Central City.

She glanced up, her eyes swiftly passing over the precinct. When she was sure she was unwatched, she typed the name Martha Higgins, the occupant of apartment 3A and Sara's neighbor two doors down, into the search bar.

Was checking up on her neighbors morally right? No. Was it an abuse of power? Probably. But, was it justified because she was doing it with the safety of her daughter in mind? As much as Sara wished the answer was yes, she also knew that even in Avery's best interest, using the classified police database to perform background checks on her neighbors was probably not morally correct.

Sara, however, had never really cared about being morally correct.

There was nothing on Martha Higgins, nothing on the man in 3B who'd brought her a pie when they first met. Samuel Barnes — in 3C — had a few parking tickets, but they had all been paid on time. Everyone was clean, at least until she reached the occupants of 3D. Sara had a funny feeling that the Snart siblings wouldn't be as clean as the rest of her neighbors.

She was right about that.

Leonard Snart had one of the longest criminal records she'd ever seen. It began when he was twelve years old, and included a little bit of everything, from grand larceny to first degree murder to arson. His sister's list wasn't quite as long, or as diverse — she mainly dealt in petty thievery, but she had a few overlapping crimes with her brother.

Both of their records halted in late-2014. Sara wasn't entirely sure why — she'd only be accepted to the force in 2015 — but for whatever reason, Leonard and Lisa had turned away from a life of crime and never looked back.

Or so she thought.

* * *

"Don't you know who that is?" Leonard seethed, pacing across the living room, "That's the head of the Captain Cold case. We live across the hall from he woman who is actively trying to put me in jail. We have to move."

Lisa was slumped on the couch, her eyes following Leonard as he walked from one end of the room to the other.

"We're not moving," she said, "and anyway, if she didn't recognize you now, maybe she never will."

"I don't want to take that risk," he replied, "I have a bad feeling about this."

"So do I," Lisa shrugged. Leonard came to a stop in front of the TV.

"You do?"

"Yeah, _you_ couldn't keep your eyes off her," Lisa smirked as her brother blanched, "Now move. I wanna watch TV."

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed! Next chapter will be up soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

The day Sara's father dropped by was a Friday. Sara usually liked Fridays; she worked a half day, Avery didn't have preschool, she could just spend time with her kid.

She didn't really like that particular Friday though.

Sara was cleaning up after breakfast when the buzzer on the intercom rang out.

"Avery," she called out, predicting what was going to happen before it did, "Ask who it is before you let them in."

"Who is it?" Avery asked obediently.

"It's Grandpa," the intercom answered cheerfully.

"Mommy!" Avery exclaimed, "Grandpa's here!"

"Great…" Sara drew out the word in mock-excitement. She hurriedly moved the rest of the dishes to the dishwasher, surveying the rest of the apartment. It wasn't perfect, but it was better than most days and her father was going to have to take what he could get.

There was a knocking sound followed by the metallic rattling of Avery fiddling with the chain on the door.

"Avery, ask who—" Avery threw open the door, "— it is."

"Grandpa!" Avery screeched. She jumped into Quentin Lance's arms.

"Hey, kiddo," he said, placing her back on the ground and tousling her hair, "Where's your mom?"

"In the kitchen," Avery answered.

"Dad," Sara emerged from the kitchen and crossed the living room to hug her father.

"Sara," he said, sliding his hands into his pockets, "Sorry for dropping in on you like this. I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd stop by to see the new place."

"You've been here before, dad," Sara pointed out, "You helped me move."

"Yeah, well, I wanted to see it all unpacked," he looked around the apartment, "It looks pretty good. I like what you've done."

"Thanks," Sara replied.

"Grandpa, wanna come see my room?" Avery exclaimed.

"Of course I want to see your room!"

Avery took Quentin's hand and started pulling him down the hallway. Sara went back into the kitchen and started making a pot of coffee. She didn't know why she felt so uneasy about her father's presence. It was just that every time she saw him, they always got into a fight about _something_ : work, how she was raising Avery, even just her living in Central city, so far away from him and Laurel. Sara didn't need that kind of negativity.

That's not to say her father was an inherently negative figure in her life. It's just that ever since the day she told him she was pregnant, Sara had felt that her father had never taken her seriously.

She needed to relax. Nothing was going to happen, especially not with Avery in the room. Right?

"Daily bubble, Mommy?" Avery asked, reappearing from her bedroom.

"I'm making coffee right now, Ave. How about Grandpa does it today," Sara replied.

"Okay," she said cheerfully.

They emerged from the balcony minutes later.

"How many seconds?" Sara asked, stepping out of the kitchen with a coffee mug in each hand.

"Five," Avery grumbled.

"Oh well," Sara shrugged, "Maybe it will be better tomorrow."

"Or maybe the apartment's cursed," Avery said, the frown not leaving her face, "We've been here for _weeks_ and it's been five seconds almost _every time_."

"I don't think the apartment's cursed, honey," Sara replied, handing a ceramic mug of steaming coffee to her father.

They sat around the large glass coffee table, Sara sitting on the brown leather sofa with her legs curled under her, Quentin in the armchair, and Avery was sitting cross-legged on the floor, bent over a coloring book.

"So why are you in Central City?" Sara asked, raising her coffee mug to her lips, "Work stuff?"

"Yeah," Quentin nodded, "They brought me in to look at that triple homicide case, see if there were connections to anyone in the Star City books."

"How'd it go?"

"Not too bad. They have a few leads." Then, as an after though, he added, "And I met your boss."

"Oh, you met Joe!" Sara brightened, "What'd you think?"

"He's a good guy," he tipped his head to the side, "Good cop. He was telling me about the Captain Cold case."

"Yeah I've been working a lot on that recently."

"Not on the field, I hope," Quentin narrowed his eyes.

"It's part of the job," Sara shrugged.

"Sara, you know how I feel about you working on the field," Quentin chastised. His expression reminded Sara of the one he'd worn when she told him she was pregnant, one of disappointment and disdain.

It made her blood boil.

"Yes dad," she said angrily, "I know how you feel, because you _never_ let me forget."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you bring this up _every_ time I see you!" Sara raise her voice above his, "You treat me like I'm still a frickin' kid. I _have_ a kid for God's sake!"

"That's exactly why I'm concerned!" Quentin retorted, matching the volume of his daughter's voice, "All this work you're doing in the field is irresponsible! You have a child, you need to think responsibly! What happens to Avery if something happens to you? What if you die? What happens then?"

"You don't need to be worry about…"

Sara and Quentin were so preoccupied with their argument that they didn't notice Avery stand, open the front door, and walk out of the apartment and into the hallway.

* * *

In his own apartment, Leonard was alone. Lisa was out on a job interview and wouldn't be back until late, so he was by himself.

He was tinkering with the cold gun. It had briefly stalled during the heist that had taken place the night before. The delay had caused him to misaim and encase the target's entire head in a block of ice. It wasn't really a big deal; it hadn't impeded on the score, but he expected the gun to be in peak condition at all times.

He was thinking about how nice the solitude was. He very rarely was alone now that his heists were a group effort, and then going home to an apartment that he shared with his sister. Then there was the whole situation with the new neighbors across the hall, Sara Lance and her daughter Avery. Leonard didn't really care too much about kids, but for some reason, he was proud to know that Avery'd taken a shine to him.

Those words were from Sara herself.

He'd seen a lot of the two Lances over the last few weeks. Lisa was quite frankly obsessed with Avery and took every opportunity to babysit when Sara asked her to. Avery was at his apartment a lot, and in the time Leonard spent with her, he discovered that four year olds are a varied bunch. This one was very unlike how Lisa had been at four.

Some — Lisa belonging to this group — believe they have long since grown up, and sometimes, you'd have trouble disagreeing with them.

Others care more about the make-believe worlds they've painted inside their heads than about the grown-up world at all.

Others still — a party that included Avery Lance — fall in part on both sides, and the child you see one moment may be entirely different from the one you see the next.

Leonard found that his general distaste from children did not extend to Avery, so he didn't mind coming home from a heist to see the kid playing Candy Land with his sister.

Especially because it meant he'd get to see Sara when she came to pick her up.

Yeah, he definitely didn't mind that.

He had to admit that he felt something towards Sara, not that he'd ever act on it. His relationships in the past had never gone well and he was happy just letting whatever was between them remain what it was now, because he knew that if something went sideways, it would affect the kid, too.

Besides, there was nothing wrong with flirtatious banter, right?

Leonard's train of thought was interrupted by someone knocking lightly on the door. He quickly reassembled the cold gun and returned it to its hidden case behind a painting. Once he put the painting back on the wall, he crossed the room and opened the door. He almost thought nobody was there until he felt a tugging sensation on the leg of his jeans.

"Down here."

Leonard looked down and saw Avery Lance standing on his doormat.

"Hey kid," Leonard said, glancing up and down the hallway, but not seeing Sara anywhere,"

"Where's your mom?"

"In there," Avery pointed to her own apartment.

"Then what are you doing here?"

"I didn't wanna be there now. My mom and my Grandpa are fighting about me again."

Leonard remembered overhearing a lot of fighting when he was younger, although he was sure both the subject matter and the intensity of the fighting going on in Sara's apartment was very different from what he saw as a child. Nonetheless, he opened his door wider to let Avery in.

"So what's your mom and your grandfather fighting about?" Leonard asked, watching her pull herself up onto a barstool at the kitchen island. He opened a cupboard in the kitchen and took out a box of Lisa's cookies and placed them in front of Avery.

He walked around the island and sat on the barstool next to Avery's. Her legs dangled far above the ground, while Leonard was able to stretch his out in front of him.

"Mommy's job," Avery shrugged, reaching into the box of cookies, "I don't think think he really likes that she's a cop. He thinks one day she's gonna get hurt."

"Isn't _he_ a cop?" Leonard asked, remembering one particular heist in Star City where Quentin Lance had been in the frontline of the police force attempting to stop them (they'd been unsuccessful).

"Yeah, but I don't think he wants Mommy to be one too. My Aunt Laurel is a lawyer, I think, and he likes that more than Mommy's job."

"So they fight about that a lot?" Leonard asked. Avery nodded. "You said they were fighting about _you_ , though."

"Yeah, Grandpa thinks Mommy's being ir-re-spon-si-ble," she looked up at the ceiling in concentration as she sounded out a long word, "because she's going after that bad guy, Mr. Cold."

" _Captain_ Cold."

"Yeah him. Mommy's trying to beat him but he's too good at being a bad guy and she can't and Grandpa thinks she's gonna get too hurt and then she can't take care of me anymore."

"Oh," he replied. Throughout Avery's speech, Leonard had begun to feel something suspiciously like guilt. He had thought he understood the importance of keeping his cover, and while any interactions with the police force meant he simply tried to avoid going after Sara, he also knew that if anyone started to sense a pattern, he'd be done for. Hearing Avery made him realize that he'd never thought about the flip-side: if something happened to Sara, it would affect Avery too.

Suddenly Leonard became uncomfortably aware that he had a four year old eating chocolate chip cookies in his apartment.

"I think it's time to get you home."

"Okay."

Before Leonard knew what was happening, Avery had stretched her arms towards him and, instinctively, he lifted her up. Feigning nonchalance, he headed back out of his apartment and into the hallway towards Avery's.

"Mommy," Avery called once she and Leonard and entered the apartment. Sara looked up when she heard her daughter's voice.

"I think you lost something," Leonard said, handing Avery back to her.

"Thanks Leonard," Sara said gratefully.

"Don't mention it," he replied. He turned to address Quentin Lance, "Maybe you shouldn't fight in front of the kid. It's not in good taste."

He turned on his heels and left the apartment. A few moments of silence passed by.

"I'm heading out to the precinct," Sara said, sending a pointed look to her dad, "Where I work. As a cop. Are you still gonna watch my kid or do I have to call mom?"

"Sara," Quentin defensively threw his arms up, "Of course I'm gonna watch Avery, but—"

"But nothing," Sara interrupted, "This is my job, and I love doing it. Period."

* * *

 **A short and sweet one today. I'll be back in a couple days with chapter 3!**


	3. Chapter 3

"Lance," Detective Joe West began walking with her the minute she stepped out of the elevator at the police precinct, "We found another body."

"Another Cold victim?" Sara asked, jumping into detective-mode.

"Yeah," he answered, "but get this: it was a head shot. His whole head was just a block of ice."

"That's new," Sara said with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah, no kidding. He died of asphyxiation before the frost bite got him."

"You want me to head over to the scene?"

Joe nodded, "Allen's already on his way over if you need a hand."

"Got it. I'm on my way," Sara replied, spinning on her heels and heading back towards the elevators.

* * *

She soon arrived at the crime scene — an abandoned diner that had been operating as the headquarters of a minor crime ring, the head of which was lying on the cracked linoleum floor with his head encased in ice.

"Poor guy," Barry said, coming up to Sara with a forensic kit in his hand, "I guess he knows now what happens when you cross Captain Cold."

"That's what you think happened?"

"Yeah, I mean ice is his MO, and this crime ring was just starting to gain some ground. Makes sense that Cold would go after them if they're going after his territory. It's just a guess, but it is an educated one."

Sara crouched down to get a closer look at the victim. His skin was purple and bloating, already in the first stages of decomposition.

"So that means when we finally catch this guy, we've got him on, what, sixteen counts of murder?" Sara said, standing up and walking away from the body with Barry.

"Yeah," Barry said rather hurriedly, his eyes widening slightly, "I guess so. I'll see you later, Sara. I gotta go, you know, process this evidence."

He tapped the forensic kit lightly before turning towards the exit.

Sara shook her head in exasperation before going to interview witnesses.

Security cameras and facial recognition software had picked up three people that had been near the scene of the crime around the time it was being committed.

Sara crossed the concrete dock to the makeshift pavilion that had been set up for them. There were three witnesses, all of them men.

The first two were there together. They were fisherman, and had, according to them, been crossing the dock when they heard shouting coming from the diner. Sara was pretty positive neither of them had anything to do with the crime. She was even more sure that neither of them were Captain Cold.

She let them go and turned to the next and final witness. During the duration of the last witnesses' interviews, he'd been sitting hunched over, his back to her, but he sat up when she turned to him.

"Leonard?" she said, recognition washing over her.

"Detective Lance," he smirked, "How's the kid."

"Why am I not even surprised to see you here?" Sara said, narrowing her eyes.

"Because you've obviously looked me up and know I had a record." Leonard knew he was right when Sara's face fell, "You're a cop. You're all the same. I'm sure you know then that I haven't been in that business for a few years."

"Then why did we find you at the site of a murder?" Sara asked, raising her eyebrows, "and I assume it's not because you're a fisherman."

"I was here for the view, believe it or not," he replied, ignoring Sara as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh really?"

"I used to live around here. I took my sister down to the docks when she was little to look at the boats."

"So you came here to…" Sara trailed off, waiting for him to finish the statement.

"I came here to remember my past."

"Funny, it doesn't sound like those were good memories."

"Doesn't mean they aren't worth remembering."

Before Sara could respond, another police officer stepped up to the pavilion.

"He can go," the officer said, "Plausible deniability."

"What?" Sara asked,

"We got sources placing him at a bar down the road at the estimated time of the murder, Saints and Sinners," he turned to Leonard, "You can go."

"See you around, Lance," he said as he stood and turned to leave.

* * *

Leonard and Sara happened to run into each other again a few days later, when Sara was on yet another unscheduled trip to the grocery store to pick up supplies for a project Avery was doing for school.

"Mommy, look who it is!"

Avery reappeared around the corner. Behind her, she was dragging Leonard, who was doing his very best to look unfazed by what was happening

"Hi," Sara said somewhat sympathetically, "Sorry about her."

"How come you're here too?" Avery asked before Leonard could reply.

"Yes why _are_ we always running into each other?" Sara raised her eyebrows.

"A man's gotta eat," Leonard replied. He glanced at the bags of marshmallows Sara was holding, "I see you've taken a less nutritional approach to feeding your child."

Sara rolled her eyes, "These are for a project for school."

"We're building bridges out of toothpicks and marshmallows and gumdrops," Avery chirped, jabbing at the bag of marshmallows in her mom's hand, "The one that can hold up the most marbles gets an extra snack."

"Wow," Leonard responded, "I thought you were in preschool."

"My teacher said it's never to early to learn about the effects of gravitational pull," Avery rattled off. She looked up at Leonard, "Do you know science?"

"I suppose."

"You wanna come help me build it?"

"Hey," Sara said, feigning offense, "I thought _I_ was gonna help you!"

"Yeah, but Lenny knows science," Avery replied.

"Hey, I know science too," she protested.

"You know how to find a dead guy, not build a bridge," Avery said, as logistically as a four year old could.

"What makes you think I'll be better at that than your mom?" Leonard asked, "Not that I blame you."

He saw Sara roll her eyes.

"You just look," she tipped her head in thought, "more science-y than she does."

"Well," Sara shrugged in defeat, "You're welcome to come over, Leonard. She clearly wants your help more than mine."

"And we're having pizza for dinner," Avery added, nodding knowingly. She clearly thought that pizza was a winning argument.

"And free pizza," Sara agreed.

"If you really want my help—" Leonard began, but he was cut off as Avery threw herself at him.

"Thank you, Lenny!"

Leonard hastily lifted Avery up before she could topple over.

"You sure you want to be adding more sugar to this?" he asked Sara pointedly. She rolled her eyes yet again.

"Snart!" The voice that came from behind them was gruff, but not intimidating. They turned around and saw a burly, heavily tattooed man. Leonard's face brightened.

"Mick!" he exclaimed. He put Avery down so he could shake the man's hand.

"Long time no see, Leonard," Mick said, "Been, what, five years? Must 'a been. The last time I saw you, you were just getting out. I got out last year, good behavior an' all." His words came out quickly and endlessly. Even as he looked towards Sara and Avery, they didn't stop, "Who's this? Don't tell me you got hitched _and_ had a kid before I could even get out. She's a pretty one, Snart. You got lucky. I should go, I think I'm being tailed. Don't want to get your little family caught up in my problems. See ya, Snart."

"Mick," Leonard nodded at his retreating form. Mick rounded the corner and then he was gone. Sara covered Avery's ears.

"What the hell was that?" she asked before letting her daughter go.

"An old friend. We met in juvie as teenagers. Ended up working together for a few years before we got caught. I got out before him; I guess there were no hard feelings."

"Why didn't you correct his comment about us being _married_?" Sara asked.

"Mick is not a man you want to correct, trust me," he replied.

"But-"

"Mommy," Avery interrupted, "Can we go now. I wanna build my bridge."

"Yes Avie," Sara sighed, dropping her discussion with Leonard, "We can go."

"See you back home, Lenny," Avery smiled cheekily.

* * *

Later, while Sara waited for the pizza to be delivered, she watched Leonard help Avery with her science project. Gumdrops, marshmallows, and toothpicks were strewn across the dining room table where they sat. He was currently explaining to her why triangles were the strongest shape.

He was remarkably good with the little girl, he had Avery hanging onto every word.

When the pizza arrived, they took a break and cleared off three places at the dining room table. Avery could barely get a bite of pizza in through her excited words.

"— and then Lenny showed me how triangles with gumdrops are stronger than the marshmallow ones 'cause they're not as squishy, and I know Mia and Kyle are only using marshmallows because they taste better so my bridge is _definitely_ gonna have more marbles than theirs. Are you done eating yet, Lenny?"

"Honey, no, he's not done eating yet, but you haven't even started," Sara chastised, pointing to Avery's untouched plate, "Park your butt in that chair and start eating."

Avery's smile didn't fade as she complied. The flow of words didn't stop either, the only difference being the occasional pause for swallowing.

Leonard stayed for another hour, until Avery's bridge was complete and resting safely in an old shoebox.

Thanks for helping me Lenny!" Avery said, hugging his legs.

"No problem kid," he replied. Avery turned to Sara.

"Can I show Lenny my poem before he goes?" Avery asked.

"Sure, honey," Sara replied. Avery ran back into her room to retrieve the poem.

"Is this something I should have an explanation for before watching?" Leonard asked.

"Her preschool is having a celebration for Father's Day this Friday. Each class is showing something and hers reciting poem."

"Ah," Leonard replied as Avery ran back into the living room, now holding a slightly crumbled piece of paper in in one hand.

She stood in front of Leonard and Sara and theatrically cleared her throat.

 _"Daddy, I love you, for all that you do,_

 _"I'll kiss you and hug you 'cause you love me too,"_

While the words coming out of her mouth were sweet, the monotone they were taking form in dampened the effect slightly.

" _You feed me and need me to teach you to play,_

 _"So smile 'cause I love you on this father's day."_

When she was finished, she lowered the paper and looked to Sara and Leonard expectantly.

"Wow, that's," finally, Sara said,"great, honey. Maybe next time a little bit…less like a robot. Put a bit more feeling into it."

"How am I supposed to put feeling into it when I dunno what having a dad feels like?" Avery asked, staring at her mother with wide eyes.

"I don't know, just pretend."

Avery's face brightened, "I can do that! I pretend I have a dad all the time!"

"Great," Sara grumbled as Avery bounded into her bedroom.

"Ouch," Leonard said, "That can't feel good."

"It's fine," she replied. Leonard tried to to ignore the sadness in her eyes, "Thanks for helping Avery, but I gotta put her to bed."

"See you around, Lance," he said, turning towards the door.

"You too, Snart."

* * *

A few days later, there was a quiet knocking on the door. Leonard opened it and immediately looked down to see Avery.

"Kid," he said, "What'll it be today."

"My bridge won," she smiled, "It held fifty two marbles and I got extra cookies at snack."

"Congrats," he replied.

"It's 'cos you helped me," Avery nodded, "Thank you."

She stepped forwards and wrapped her arms around him.

"Alright, enough with the hugging," Leonard said, detaching Avery from his legs. He took her hand and led her back to her own apartment.

"I caught an Avery," he said when he saw Sara.

"Thanks Len," she said gratefully, "Ave, what'd I say about doing that?"

But Avery was already gone, bounding into her bedroom.

"How was the Father's Day festivities?" Leonard asked Sara, "That was today, right?"

Sara shrugged, leaning against the back of a chair.

"It could have been worse," she said, "She just doesn't _get it_. I don't think she even realized that there's something wrong with her family situation until she started preschool—"

"There's nothing _wrong_ with her family situation," Leonard insisted, causing Sara to stop mid-sentence, "It's just _different_."

"That's what I tell her when she asks," Sara replied, "and I don't think she really notices most of the time. It's just more obvious, I guess, around Father's Day."

Leonard nodded.

"Mommy," Avery called from her bedroom, "I need my ballet shoes!"

"I'll let you go," Leonard said.

The last thing he saw before he turned to leave was Sara's sad smile and he swore to himself he'd never let Sara look that sad again.

* * *

This is not the last we've seen of Mick ;) Also, I found Avery's Father's Day poem in the depths of Pinterest and couldn't find it again, but that's where it's from.


	4. Chapter 4

"Lenny!" Avery exclaimed when Leonard opened the door to his apartment.

"Kid, what'd we say about your little escapades?" he said.

"Relax," Sara said, coming up behind her, "I'm here too."

"Well my day just keeps getting better and better."

"Do I detect a hint of sarcasm?"

"Actually, today, you don't," Leonard shot back. Sara tried to ignore the hidden meanings in his statement.

Lisa appeared in the doorway.

"Did I hear the sound of my favorite four-year-old?" she said, bending down to lift up Avery. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm just on my way off to bring Ave to preschool and we wanted to stop by and invite you guys over for dinner tonight. My sister and her husband are coming over and I thought you might want to join us. From what you were saying, Lisa, you both probably would appreciate a meal that isn't takeout."

"Yeah, we'd love to," Lisa said, "Wouldn't we, Len?"

She elbowed her brother in the side.

"As much as I'd like to spend an evening with your family," Leonard said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "I have to work tonight."

"Please Lenny?" Avery said, tugging on his shirt, "It's not gonna go very late because I gotta go to bed and Auntie Laurel wants to go see Grandma too."

"Avery," Sara said warningly, detaching her from Leonard's shirt, "Remember what I said? _Don't push._ "

Avery said nothing, just pouted up at her mother.

"I gotta get Avery to school," she said, turning back to Leonard and Lisa, "Lisa, I'll see you later, say, around four? Stop by if you can Leonard, but don't worry about it too much."

Leonard nodded.

"Ready Avery?" Sara asked, but Avery dug her heels into the floor.

"No!" she crossed her arms and shook her head, her curls becoming even more disheveled, "I'm not moving until Lenny says he'll come tonight."

Sara raised her eyebrows.

"Okay," she said, "Don't move. That's fine," she went behind Avery and lifted her up under her arms, "but either way you're going to school."

As Sara began walking down the hallway, Avery's backpack over one shoulder and Avery herself over the other, Avery turned to wave.

"Bye Lenny! Bye Lisa," she called, "See you later!"

* * *

"Mommy," Avery called later that evening, "Auntie Laurel and Uncle Tommy are gonna be here in twenty minutes."

"And how do you know that?" Sara asked skeptically, emerging from the kitchen with a salad bowl in tow.

"Cause Auntie Laurel just called."

"Since when were you answering the phone?"

"Since it was ringing," Avery replied. Sara shook her head in defeat and returned to the kitchen.

Just as she was reaching into the oven, there was a knocking on the door. Before Sara had time to react, she heard the sound of the door being thrown open and Avery exclaiming,

"Mommy, it's Lisa and Lenny!"

By the time she returned to the living room, the siblings were already inside the apartment.

"Did you ask who it was?" Sara asked her daughter, who nodded emphatically. Sara glanced up at Lisa who silently shook her head.

"You know, I'm really gonna miss you when you get kidnapped one day," she said.

"I like your outfit Avie," Lisa said.

"Thanks!" Avery replied, twirling around several times for emphasis.

Avery was wearing what appeared to be a purple and blue leotard with an attached tutu skirt — the kind you'd see in a toddler's ballet class. Underneath was a pair of striped tights. On her feet was a pair of pink ballet slippers.

"She had her first ballet class a few days ago," Sara explained, "I can't get her to take it off."

"Wanna come see my room Lisa?" Avery asked taking Lisa's hand.

"I've already seen your room, Avie," Lisa replied as Avery started pulling her down the hallway.

"I moved the dollhouse yesterday," Avery said, "It's a game changer."

"Oh, well then, I guess I have to see it."

Lisa allowed Avery to pull her into her bedroom.

A few seconds of quiet passed by.

"I see you decided to stop by," Sara said in an attempt to fill the silence.

"Yeah, well I have a few hours to kill before I have to go to work and I figured, where else would I spend it besides with my neighbors and their relatives?" Leonard shrugged.

"My sister and her husband will be here in a few minutes," she said.

"Not a fan of the brother-in-law?" Leonard asked, reading her facial expression.

"I'm a fan of good company," Sara corrected, unconsciously stepping closer to him, "Why do you think I invited you?"

"Oh?"

It was at this point that Sara became very aware of how close she and Leonard were standing. She could see the rise and fall of his chest, or at least, she would have if her eyes weren't locked on his. He seemed to have come to the same realization as her.

"Anyway," Sara said, stepping away from him, "It shouldn't be too long until they show up."

Lisa and Avery returned to the living room moments later.

"She was right," Lisa said, "Moving the dollhouse was a game changer."

"Lenny!" Avery gasped, "You've never seen my room _ever_!" She reached out towards him, "Come see my room!"

"You can say no but she'll never leave you alone," Sara advised him.

"Alright," he sighed, allowing Avery to take his hand in her tiny one.

Avery's bedroom was exactly like and unlike Leonard had expected Sara's influence on the room was obvious, but there were still hints of Avery too.

"That's my bed," Avery said importantly, pointing to a tiny bed — the type meant for toddlers. The frame was shaped like the outline of a house. Draped over the "roof" was a string of fairy lights that twinkled like stars against a gauzy canopy, "The lights are there 'cause I'm afraid of the dark."

Next to the bed was a pile of picture books and a chair.

"That's where Mommy sits when she reads me bedtime stories," Avery said. She then pointed to a pile of toys in one corner of the room, "Those are my stuffed animals. Mommy put those letters on the wall, but I don't remember what it says."

" _Don't feed the animals_ ," he read off the wall, " _They're stuffed_."

"Mommy put them there," Avery said again, although Leonard could have figured that out on his own; it was a perfect example of her kind of humor.

In another corner was a tall wooden dollhouse, the one that had apparently been somewhere else in the room and was a main contributor to the overall Feng Shui.

On the other side of the room was what appeared to be an actual fabric teepee, and inside was a fuzzy cream-colored beanbag chair and some more books.

"And that," Avery said, "is where I practice ballet."

Leonard tuned back in to see Avery point to a gold framed mirror leaning up against a wall. It was tall — not quite as tall as Leonard but perfect for the tiny four-year-old. In front of it, al manner of dance-related items — shoes, leotard, tutus — were strewn across the dark wood floors.

"The dollhouse makes a big difference," he told Avery, who apparently didn't remember he'd never seen the room before.

"So what'd you think," Sara said when they returned to the living room.

"I can see why she shows it to everyone she meets," Leonard replied, "I like the teepee."

"It was a fourth birthday present from my dad. Anyway, you can sit," Sara gestured to the couch, "Make yourself comfortable."

Leonard sat and then a moment later said, "How could I comfortable with a four-year-old on my lap."

Sara turned to see that Avery had indeed climbed into Leonard's lap.

"Avery," Sara said, "Lay off of Len for a little bit, honey."

"C'mere Avie," Lisa said, pulling Avery into her own lap. She picked up a plastic doll, "Tell me about her."

Avery launched into the backstory of the doll, who was a ballerina by day and an FBI spy at night. Only halfway through the tale, the intercom buzzed.

"C'mon up, Laurel," Sara said, letting them into the building.

A few minutes later, Laurel knocked on the door. For once, Avery didn't jump to open it. She was too occupied in telling Lisa about her doll to notice anything else.

Sara crossed the living room and pulled open the door.

"Sara!" Laurel exclaimed, pulling her sister into a hug, "It's so good to see you!"

"It's good to see you too," Sara said, reciprocating the hug. Over Laurel's shoulder, she saw her brother-in-law Tommy Merlyn standing a few steps behind his wife, "Hey Tommy."

"Sara," he nodded in her direction, "I like the new place."

"Thanks," she replied, "C'mon in."

She led them into the apartment.

"Mom's not here yet?" Laurel asked.

"Can't make it," Sara shook her head, "Apparently she's grading finals, but she'll be done in time for when you stop by later."

"Auntie Laurel!" Avery shouted, launching herself into her aunt's arms.

"Avie!" Laurel said, lifting her niece up, "You've gotten so big since the last time I saw you!"

Avery giggled as Laurel placed her gently on the ground.

"That's quite an outfit," Tommy said, ruffling Avery's hair, "What'd you do, get dressed in the dark this morning or something?"

He was joking, but even all the way from the couch, Leonard saw Avery's smile fade slightly.

"What're you talking about?" he said defensively, "Tutus are the next big thing You're looking at high fashion right now."

"Yeah," Avery said, leaning towards Tommy with her hands on her hips and her nose scrunched up, "High fashion."

"You wanna introduce us to your guests, Sara?" Laurel asked, gesturing to Leonard and Lisa, who she'd only just noticed.

Before Sara could answer, Avery piped up.

"This is Lenny and Lisa," she said, pointing to each of the respectively, "They live across the hall. Lisa sometimes watches me while Mommy's at work, and Lenny helped me build a bridge for school last week and I won a prize."

"Hi," Laurel said to the siblings, who nodded in response.

"Mommy," Avery said, pulling on the hem of Sara's shirt, "Daily bubble?"

"Yeah, you can do the daily bubble," Sara nodded. She turned to the guests, "She's been waiting all day so she can do the daily bubble with you guys." She looked back at Avery, "But you have to do it now because it's getting dark."

"C'mon!" Avery said, gesturing for everyone to follow her onto the balcony.

"It's been so long since I saw a daily bubble," Laurel said, "What's your record?"

"Eleven seconds," Sara replied.

While everyone was getting situated on the balcony and Avery was helping her mother prepare the bubble wand, Leonard took in Sara's sister and brother-in-law.

Laurel was just as attractive as her sister, but in different ways. It was obvious in both sisters' stances and the way the acted around each other that Laurel was the older sister. She emanated a certain regality, maturity. He remembered Sara — or was it Avery? — saying that Laurel was a lawyer in Star City, and now that he was seeing her in person, that didn't surprise him very much. She seemed like the "words first, violence later" type, whereas Sara was much more in favor of "punch now, talk after".

As similar as the siblings were in appearance, Leonard decided that he still found Sara more appealing.

It was her eyes.

Leonard was aware that Sara was an attractive woman. He knew it, Mick had pointed it out during their run-in at the grocery store, even Lisa had commented on it once or twice.

The sexiest part about her though?

Her eyes.

They radiated this powerful enigma of confidence that Leonard had never felt with anyone before.

Laurel was beautiful, sure, but in Leonard's opinion, no one compared to Sara.

Leonard, quickly realizing where his thoughts were going, moved on to Laurel's husband. Tommy was attractive enough, at least in a conventional sense, with his sharp jawline, light blue eyes, and dark brown hair that was combed neatly to one side. In fact, he and Laurel were possibly the most generic looking couple he'd ever seen. They looked like they could be in a commercial on TV or on a billboard you'd glance at as you drove down the freeway.

Tommy looked so familiar in fact, that Leonard could swear he'd seen him before.

Before he could try to figure out why he recognized him, the daily bubble began.

It was a good one today, they got all the way to seven seconds before it popped and they all went back inside.

While Avery was showing her Aunt Laurel her bedroom (big surprise), and Lisa was helping Sara prepare dinner in the kitchen, Leonard got time to probe Tommy, to figure out where he knew him from.

It didn't take long.

"So," he began, regard Tommy from across the glass coffee table in Sara's living room, "How did you meet Laurel?"

"I had hired her to take of some law-related issues at my company," he answered.

"Where do you work?"

"I actually run my dad's company, _Merlyn Global Group_."

Leonard suddenly recalled a framed photo on a desk in a dimly lit office.

This was _Malcolm Merlyn's_ son.

Leonard knew Malcolm Merlyn. He'd worked with him for a few years as a part of a group called the Legion of Doom.

The Legion of Doom was pretty much exactly what it sounded like. It was a group of several people who were working to better their own lives, admittedly at the expense of most of the people around them.

While he didn't work with the Legion anymore, he had enjoyed his time with them. He had been able to use the skills he had as a criminal, but he also felt like he had a purpose, he was doing something.

There were four members of the Legion of Doom, but Leonard was closest with the third to join, Malcolm Merlyn.

Closest is a relative term. People like Leonard and Malcolm, people who find themselves in Legions of Doom, don't get _close_ to other people.

But, Leonard found himself working with Malcolm more often than the others. Damian Dahrk and Eobard Thawne, an immortal wizard and a time traveling speedster respectively, tended to see things on a more holistic level, which made sense considering all that they'd been through and all they'd seen. Their plans were complicated and vague, and whenever Leonard asked about his cut, he was always met with the words " _you will see countless benefits in the long run_ ".

Malcolm, on the other hand, thought more on Leonard's level, and always made sure he was generously compensated for his work.

Leonard wasn't working with the Legion of Doom anymore, not after Malcolm had started working on a little side project — one Eobard and Damian weren't really involved in, but also not one they'd ever tried to prevent. It was a plan that Leonard didn't agree with, so he left.

Tommy Merlyn seemed to be unaware of the work his father did outside of running a major company, which made sense. You wouldn't want to tell your son about your plans to blow up an entire city if you didn't think he'd approve, and while Leonard had not known Tommy for more than an hour, he was fairly certain he wouldn't approve.

* * *

The dinner went well enough. Avery carried most of the conversation, which didn't surprise anyone. She had vehemently insisted on sitting between Leonard and Laurel, which Leonard was perhaps a bit happier about than he should have been. She was, after all, a four-year-old girl; her approval shouldn't matter, but for whatever reason, it did.

Aside from Avery, Leonard didn't really interact with anyone during the meal. He mostly just watched, observed.

He watched how Sara acted around her sister. He could see the sibling bond, and he could see the love they had for each other, but he also saw something else. He saw a sort of animosity, as if there had been some conflict between the Lance sisters that had never been fully addressed.

Leonard also observed Tommy Merlyn.

The phrase ignorance is bliss had never rung so true in just one person.

He seemed completely oblivious to almost everything, oblivious to any tension between his wife and sister-in-law, oblivious to his niece's dislike of him, oblivious to who his father was.

When the clock showed the time as 6:45, Leonard knew it was time to go. He had a job down at the docks, a job where arriving even a couple minutes too late could be fatal.

"I think it's time for me to head out," he said, standing from the couch where they had been sitting and drinking coffee.

"No!" Avery exclaimed. She crawled out of Laurel's lap to Leonard, where she dramatically draped herself across his chest, holding her hands behind his neck to keep herself from slipping off of him.

"Sorry kid," he said, "but I have to go to work."

"But it's nighttime," Avery said in confusion.

"I don't argue with the boss," he replied, hoping that his answer would be enough to satisfy Avery.

She pouted for a moment but eventually climbed off of him.

He stood up and Lisa followed suit,

"I should go too," she said, "Thanks for having us, Sara."

"I — surprisingly — had a good time," Leonard added, "See you around, Lance."

"You too, Snart," Sara replied.

Neither of them knew how soon that would be.

* * *

Laurel and Tommy left not long after the Snart siblings; they were staying at Dinah Lance's house and wanted to get there before it got too late.

That left Sara to clean up after dinner while Avery sat in the living room, coloring in a coloring book while she watched a Disney movie.

The phone rang a few minutes before eight. Before Sara had time to react, Avery had already picked it up.

"Hello," she heard her ask, before she was silent for a second, "Hi Joe!"

"Avery, give me the phone," Sara said, hurrying around the couch. She tried to grab the phone but Avery twisted away.

"Yeah, my mom's here," Avery continued, "Yeah, you can talk to her."

Avery handed the phone to her mother.

"Hey Joe," Sara said, "Sorry about her."

"No, don't worry about it," Joe replied, "Look, I know you're off duty, but we need everyone down at the docks. We've got Captain Cold, and he's putting up a pretty big fight."

Sara glanced to her side where Avery had resumed coloring. Normally, Joe never called her when she was off duty: he knew that her situation with Avery was complicated at best, and he didn't want to complicate it any further. If he was calling her, it was important.

"Sure," she said, "I'm on my way."

Sara hung up the phone and began to think logistically. She obviously couldn't leave Avery home alone, but her usual overnight babysitter — her mom — wouldn't be able get to the apartment in time, and not only that, she was visiting with Laurel and Tommy. There was no way she could call another babysitter this last-minute.

"Avery," Sara finally said, "Do you want to go visit Lisa?"

"Yeah!" Avery's eyes brightened.

"Then let's go."

They walked across the hall and knocked on Lisa's door. It was opened in a matter of seconds.

"Len- oh it's you guys," Lisa said, her face falling, "Long time no see."

"Sorry," Sara said, "Is it a bad time?"

"No," Lisa assured her, "I just thought you were my brother."

"Is something wrong."

"No," Lisa said a little to quickly, "He just had to stay late at work today. You know how it is."

"That's actually why I came over. I just got called on duty. Apparently they've got Captain Cold and they need the whole squad down there to get him."

"Aren't you a detective, not a cop?

"Yeah, but he's the number one suspect in sixteen of my cases right now which makes it part of my job to catch him."

"Oh," Lisa said, the look on her face giving Sara a funny feeling.

"Anyway, I was wondering if you'd mind watching Avery until I get back."

"Sure." Lisa said, smiling at Avery, "I'd love to hang out with her for a little bit."

"Thank you so much!" Sara exclaimed, "I'll be back in a few hours. You know the drill: she needs to be in bed around 8:30, she needs her bunny blanket to sleep. If anything does happen, just call me."

"I'm sure we'll have a ton of fun."

"Do you know how to play go-fish?" Avery piped up, pulling on the hem of Lisa's sleeve.

"I do," Lisa nodded.

"Let's go play," Avery said, grabbing Lisa's hand and pulling her back into her own apartment.

"Thanks Lis," Sara called after them as the door closed.

* * *

When she got down to the harbor, she saw Captain Cold standing at the edge of the largest dock. Blocking his way back to solid ground was an entire squadron of cops, all with their guns pointed directly at him. He looked relatively calm about the situation; his cold gun was even still in its holster, but Sara couldn't help but feel as if something was different. There was something almost familiar about him, especially in the way he was standing, with his arms hanging loosely by his sides and most of his weight on one leg. She felt as if she'd just seen someone standing exactly like that, but she couldn't figure out who.

She pulled her gun out and switched off the safety as she crept down the dock towards the group of cops.

"You've got nowhere to go, Cold," Joe West was saying, "Come quietly and no one gets hurt."

Captain Cold's eyes flicked over to her as she joined the ranks. His head tipped slightly to the side in response to the cop's statement.

Then, before anybody knew what had happened, he'd pulled out his cold gun and shot the cop standing closest to the edge of the dock, sending her flying into the water. As all the other police officers turned their attention to her, Captain Cold jumped off of the wooden dock onto the sailboat that was attached to it. Sara rolled her eyes and tore after him, rolling onto the deck of the boat and quickly jumping to her feet.

She chased Captain Cold onto the adjacent dock and back towards the shore, their feet pounding against the wood almost in sync. He ducked into an abandoned mill, disappearing behind crates and tarps hanging from beams in the ceiling before Sara could follow him. She slowed to a creeping walk, holding her gun up higher in front of her. Her head swiveled from side to side as she watched for any movements and listen for any noises.

She whipped around as a shuffling sound resonated across the otherwise silent building. She ran towards the noise and saw Captain Cold moving towards the back exit. In a rush of adrenaline, Sara aimed her gun at his retreating form, put her finger on the trigger, and pulled. The gunshot rang through the air, far louder than the sound of whatever Captain Cold had done before. He tensed, and Sara knew that she'd hit her target. She thought he might fall but he didn't. He stumbled down another aisle of metal shelves covered in sealed boxes. Just as she was about to chase after him, she heard a clattering crash and a loud thump. She rounded the corner and saw Cold crouched on the ground, his hand covering a bleeding gash in his leg. Gun at the ready, Sara approached the criminal. He turned back to look at her, and through the blue-tinted goggles, she saw something that looked inexplicably like fear. Captain Cold, afraid?

Sara reached forwards and pulled the goggles off of his face. Suddenly, she realized why she had felt as if she recognized him.

She was looking into the face of Leonard Snart

"Leonard?" she asked, taking a few stumbling steps backwards.

"If you want your daughter alive, you won't turn me in," was all Leonard Snart got to say before the butt of Sara's gun collided with the side of his head.

* * *

 **I took an accidental week off because I'm unbelievably good at procrastinating, but I'm back :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**I recently hit 1k on Tumblr, which is insane and thank you to everyone who follows me, and to celebrate, I'm posting the next chapter of Voices Carry a few days early. Yay!**

* * *

Leonard woke up propped against the window of a cop car. Sara was in the driver's seat. She glanced back at him through the rearview mirror, her eyes meeting his for a brief second before they returned to the road.

"Morning sunshine," she said, "I was starting to wonder if I'd actually killed you."

"Not quite," Leonard replied, grimacing as he moved his injured leg, "I take it you're bringing me to the precinct."

"Haven't decided yet," Sara said, tipping her head to the side, "I was going to, but then you mentioned — no, _threatened —_ my daughter, and I can't just let that go."

"Look," Leonard said, trying and failing to sit up, "I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I just need you to—"

"You have until the intersection at 1st and Main to explain yourself," Sara interrupted, "If I like what you're saying, I'll turn left and bring you to the hospital. If I don't, I'll keep going straight to the precinct. Deal?"

"Deal," Leonard said instantly, "but just one thing; don't take me to the hospital. Take me back to my apartment."

"Are you kidding? You could have a bullet in your leg!"

"I don't do hospitals."

"Fine," Sara rolled her eyes, "Start talking."

"Tommy Merlyn."

"What about him?"

"You know his dad?"

"Malcolm Merlyn? Yeah, I guess I do, a little bit."

"He is going to blow up Central City."

"I'm being serious," Sara rolled her eyes.

"So am I."

"Okay fine. Let's pretend you're telling the truth," Sara said.

"There's no need to pretend Lance," Snart said, "I'm already telling the truth."

"You're wasting time."

"Malcolm Merlyn is part of a group of people called the Legion of Doom. Their goal is to take over the world."

"And you know this because?"

"I was part of it," Leonard replied, and he saw Sara raise her eyebrows, "until I found out Merlyn's plan for Central City."

"Which is?"

"To level the city with an earthquake machine of his own invention."

"Don't be ridiculous," Sara rolled her eyes, upset at herself for thinking that the criminal would take her bargain seriously.

"Why do you think I stopped working with him? I like high-stakes work, but not _that_ high-stakes. You apparently know the man," Leonard shrugged, "Does this really seem beyond him?"

Sara opened her mouth to disagree, but found herself closing it just as quickly. He might actually have point.

She didn't see Malcolm Merlyn often, usually just at Thanksgiving, and an occasional family dinner here and there. He was an eccentric man, very intense and had a flair for the dramatic, especially when arguing for his opinions. Avery was even a bit scared of him, or so she said every time Sara brought him up. She couldn't not admit that Leonard could be right.

He had noticed her hesitation.

"See," he said.

"Then explain why you go after a crime ring?" Sara persisted, "They hardly scream world domination. They could barely even hold themselves together."

"Exactly," Leonard replied, "You don't see Merlyn walking around Central City much, do you? He doesn't need a fully functioning group of people working for him here, at least, not yet. He just needs eyes, he needs people to do his dirty work."

"Yeah, he wouldn't want to ruin his ten thousand dollar tuxes," Sara snorted, finding herself slipping into the story Snart was telling.

"You'd think there's no better front then a low budget crime ring. They're motivated enough to do what he tells them to, but disorganized enough that they can't actually do anything more than that, but—"

"But that's his downfall," Sara finished, catching Leonard's drift, "They're _too_ disorganized. As soon as you take out the boss, they completely fall apart. They'll turn against each other trying to figure out who'll take his place and they won't be able to build themselves back up again."

"Now you're getting it."

"So _that's_ why you killed that crime ring leader a few weeks ago."

"I may not be strong enough to stop Merlyn right now, but I can at least buy us all some more time."

"Funny, I kinda would have thought world domination would be Captain Cold's type of thing."

"I never did what I do for the power," Leonard said, turning to stare stonily out the window, "I do it for the money. I want my sister to have a good life."

"Why don't you get a job, like the rest of the world?"

"Most places aren't too keen on hiring criminals, Lance," he said, looking away from the window to meet her eyes, "As I cop I'm sure you're aware of that."

"Why do I feel like that's your excuse for not even trying."

They pulled up to the intersection at First and Main. The seconds ticked by as they waited for it to turn green. Leonard could see the lights of the precinct down the street.

Finally, the traffic light changed.

Sara turned left.

Leonard let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

"I take it you're not turning me in."

"I know I should be," Sara admitted, "but for some reason I feel like it would be a worse mistake if I did."

* * *

They arrived at their apartment building a few minutes later. Sara walked around the side of the car and opened the door to help Leonard out. He winced as he put his weight on his bad leg.

"Why again am I not taking you to the hospital?"

"I don't do hospitals," Leonard answered.

"You could have a bullet in your leg!"

"I've had worse."

"At least let me look at it," Sara said, helping him into the lobby.

"If it helps you sleep at night."

Sara rolled her eyes as she watched Leonard try to climb the stairs.

After what seemed like eons, they reached the third floor.

"I should change out of these clothes," Leonard said, as he withdrew his hand from the leg of his jeans to see his palm and fingers wet with blood.

Sara nodded as they turned into their respective apartments.

"Lisa," Sara called once she entered her home, "I'm back. Was Avery good?"

"She always is," Lisa replied, closing her magazine and standing up from the couch, "She's asleep now."

Sara nodded.

"Did you get Captain Cold?" Lisa asked stiffly.

"In a sense," she replied, unsure whether she should tell Lisa that she knew her brother's secret, "Sorry about asking you to do this on such short notice. If you ever need a favor—"

"You'll be the first one I call," Lisa finished, heading towards the door. She crossed the hallway and returned to her own apartment.

"Lenny," she called out.

"In here," Leonard replied. She followed the voice into her brother's bedroom where Leonard was replacing his heavy parka for a hooded sweatshirt. Her eyes instantly travel to the already blood-stained leg of his grey sweatpants.

"Oh my god," Lisa exclaimed, "Lenny, what happened?"

"Got shot," he said nonchalantly as he placed the cold gun in its sealed case behind a framed painting, "It's just a graze. Sara said she'd take care of it."

"Sara?" she repeated, "Since when did Sara take care of anything? Wait, does she know? Len, too many people already know, don't you think—"

"I've got it under control," Leonard narrowed his eyebrows angrily at his sister, "Don't wait up."

She didn't look any more convinced, but she also didn't say anything, so Leonard brushed past her and back out towards Sara's apartment, trying to ignore the throbbing sensation in his leg. He knocked on the door across the hall and it was almost immediately opened by Sara.

"Hey," she said, stepping back to let him into the apartment. He had adopted a slightly more lumbering stance to compensate for his bad leg. It didn't go unnoticed by Sara, who gave him a strange look as he passed through the doorway.

"I don't think I've ever said what a nice place you've got here," Leonard drawled, stepping through the doorway.

"Be quiet," Sara glared at him, "Avery's sleeping and if she wakes up you're dead."

"That makes it sound like I want her awake," Leonard said. That did nothing to reassure Sara.

"Let's just get this over with so you can get out of here."

"You sound really sorry about _shooting me_ ," Leonard raised his voice slightly, causing Sara to glare at him again and glance back towards Avery's bedroom.

"I still don't understand why I can't just take you to the hospital," Sara commented, pulling a first aid kit out of a cabinet.

"The thing about bullet wounds," Leonard said as he sat on a barstool at the counter, "Is that people want to know why you got them. They ask questions, and I'm not a fan of questions."

"For some reason, that doesn't surprise me," Sara replied, "But you should know my medical training is fairly minimal."

"You offered to do this. Anyway, aren't you supposed to be a cop?" Leonard watched warily as Sara soaked a grey washcloth in the sink.

"I'm a homicide detective. The people I work with don't really need medical attention anymore."

Sara gestured for him to prop his leg up on the adjacent barstool.

"This might sting," Sara warned. She pulled up the cuff of his sweatpants. Leonard hissed through his teeth as the damp washcloth touched his skin, "I _told_ you. Stop moving or it's gonna be worse."

They both heard a shuffling noise from down the hallway.

"Shit," Sara swore under her breath. She grabbed Leonard's hand and placed it on the washcloth, "I have to go check on Avery. Keep holding this down."

Sara moved towards the hallway but before she'd left the dining room, she was cut off by Avery.

"Mommy, you're home!"

"Yeah, I am," Sara smiled, "Why aren't you in bed?"

"I can't sleep when you're not here."

Sara tried to block her view of the kitchen, but gave up when she saw Avery glance around her, right into the room she wasn't supposed to see.

"Mommy?" Avery whispered, tugging on Sara's sleeve.

"Yes, what is it Avie," Sara knelt down, glancing back at Leonard briefly.

"Why is Lenny bleeding all over the kitchen?"

"Oh, well," Sara cringed, "At work tonight, I sort of hit Leonard…with a bullet."

Avery's eyes widened, "You shot Lenny?"

"It was an accident," Sara said quickly, "and he's going to be okay, so don't worry!"

"Okay," Avery replied quietly, looking worriedly at the floor. Sara watched Avery's mouth slowly spread into a smile.

"What?" she asked.

" 'Member the time that boy Ryan was throwing crayons at me?"

"Mm-hm," Sara nodded.

"And you told me it's 'cause he likes me?"

"Yes."

"So 'cause you _shot_ Leonard, does that mean you _really_ like him?"

Sara could practically hear a smirk spread across Leonard's face. She closed her eyes.

"No," she quickly shook her head, "I don't think so, Avie. I _do_ think you're supposed to be asleep right now. Go back to bed."

"Can I say goodnight to Lenny first?" Avery whispered, leaning closer to her mother.

"Sure," Sara sighed, standing up and letting Avery step around her into the kitchen.

"Hi," Avery said bashfully.

"Hey kid," Leonard said, wincing as he twisted in his chair to better face her. Avery's eyes instantly went to the red-stained washcloth pressed to his leg.

"My mommy shot you."

"That she did."

"Did it hurt?" Avery's face was filled with genuine concern.

"Not too bad," Leonard replied, "I've had worse."

"You've been shot before?" she asked, her eyebrows furrowing.

"Not exactly," Leonard backtracked, regretting saying anything.

"Okay, Avery," Sara said, taking her daughter's hand and starting to lead her out of the kitchen, "You have to go back to bed."

"Good night Lenny," Avery waved with her free hand.

"G'night Avery."

When Sara returned from putting her daughter back in bed, she saw Leonard still pressing the now blood-soaked washcloth to his leg.

"Has it stopped bleeding?" she asked.

"No idea."

Sara lifted the cloth.

"I'm pretty sure it stopped." She looked closer at the wound. "You got lucky. The bullet just grazed you. It didn't even stick."

"How's that lucky?" Leonard rolled his eyes, "You still shot me."

"You're lucky because I don't have to pry any bullets out which believe me is painful as hell."

Sara extracted a medical needle and thread from the first aid kit.

"You really know how to do this?" Leonard asked, watching the needle warily.

"I know enough," Sara shrugged, "Besides, who else is going to do it if you don't want to go to this hospital?"

Leonard didn't reply, just watched the needle approach his skin.

"You ready?" Sara asked, meeting his eyes, a worried look passing over her face as she saw his apprehension, "I'll be quick, I promise."

"Just get it over with," Leonard said, attempting to hide his nervousness.

Sara began to stitch up the bullet wound. He flinched every time the sharp needle passed through his skin, but otherwise, he sat as still as possible.

Finally, after several minutes of silence, he spoke.

"While you're jabbing a needle into my skin, why don't you tell me your story. I think by now I've earned it."

"Oh really, and what makes you think that?"

"I told you mine, not to mention the whole shooting me thing. Quid pro quo, Lance."

"I don't even know where I would start," she shook her head, trying to hide that, for the second time in one night, she found herself ready to trust Captain Col- Leonard.

"Start with the kid," he shrugged.

"What about her?"

"Well, for one thing, where's the father?"

"Out of the picture."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"We dated while I was studying to become a cop," Sara said, not looking away from his needle and thread, "It was going pretty well until we went to this party and we both got so drunk that we couldn't remember anything the next morning. I found out maybe a week later that I was pregnant, and I, being naive, thought he'd be okay with it. I was wrong."

"Did he even try to stay?" Leonard asked.

"He was gone before the sentence was fully out."

"Jackass," he muttered, "My mom was in the same boat, but she convinced my dad to stay. She paid for that later."

They remained in a somber silence for several moments before Sara spoke.

"That's my consolation. I have no idea what kind of father he would have been. He might have been really good, but he also might have been shitty, especially if he didn't want to be here."

"It's better to have one good parent than a good one and a bad one," Leonard agreed. Sara nodded, "So how's it been raising her by yourself?"

"I haven't been," she replied, "Not really. My parents were a huge help. I lived with my mom up until I moved here and my dad offered to move from Star City to help out. I said no, because I didn't want to be the reason they give up their own lives, but he still found ways to lend a hand even a city away."

"Why'd you move?"

"Because I could. I have the money, and now that Avery's in preschool, I don't need my mom to watch her all day. Plus, I don't want to be dependent on anyone anymore, not if I don't have to be. My mom was actually pretty cool with the whole thing."

"And the rest of your family? I know I overheard a particularly unpleasant conversation between you and your dad."

Leonard saw Sara roll her eyes.

"My father is sometimes incapable of seeing me as an adult, at least, not since I told him I was pregnant. He figured out on his own that I'd been drunk at the time, and it didn't help that he'd never met my boyfriend, who by then was already so far out of the picture it was like he'd never been there in the first place. To him, every decision I make is rushed or selfish or reckless. He hates that I kept working to become a cop, even after I had Avery, and he hates that I _am_ a cop because he thinks it's selfish and irresponsible and that somehow it makes me a worse mother."

"And your sister?"

"Laurel? What about her?" Sara asked, glancing up briefly before looking back down at her stitches.

"C'mon you could have cut the tension between the two of you with a knife."

"My sister," Sara said, "is still mad at me because over ten years ago her fiancé cheated on her."

"Tommy cheated on her?"

"No, not him. He's so out of her league he'd have to be out of his mind to cheat on her," Sara shook her head, "You heard of Oliver Queen?" Leonard nodded, "That's the one."

"I still don't understand why she's mad at _you_ for that."

"He cheated on her with me."

"Oh," Leonard replied with raised eyebrows, "Okay, I can definitely see why that would cause some problems."

"Yeah."

"Is he Avery's…" he trailed off, not wanting to finish the question.

"No," Sara shook her head, "Laurel had the same question. Well, she had the same question after she thought I was lying about being pregnant."

"What?"

"Sometimes Laurel still sees me as the immature nineteen year old who thought it would be a good idea to sleep with her sister's boyfriend. She still thinks she's better than me in every possible way, which was fine when we were younger because most of the time she was right, but now it isn't. I've worked too hard to still be her train wreck little sister who always tries to steal the show."

"What do you mean?" Leonard asked, his eyes following the needle in Sara's hand.

"As it turns out, the world doesn't always happen at times when it's convenient to Laurel Lance," Sara rolled her eyes, "The day I told my family I was pregnant with Avery was at a family dinner that my sister was having to announce her engagement to Tommy, which I didn't know at the time because she hadn't told us she was engaged yet. I had no idea! My water broke at her wedding reception, which she claimed happened because I was jealous of all the attention she was getting on her _special day_."

"She thought you induced your own labor just to make her jealous?" Leonard asked skeptically.

"She admitted she overreacted later, but it didn't make it hurt any less," Sara said, cutting the thread with a thin pair of metal scissors, "I just love her so much, and when you love someone, you find a way to love their flaws." She was quiet for a moment or too, "Speaking of flaws, you're all done."

She wrapped a gauzy bandage around his leg several times before rolling down the leg of his sweatpants.

"Those stitches will dissolve on their own in two or three weeks. Try to keep off that leg in the meantime," she said.

"I suppose I should say thank you," Leonard replied, "But I just remembered that the only reason you did this is because _you_ shot me."

Sara raised her eyebrows.

"Thank you," he amended.

"You're welcome," she smirked.

"I should go," Leonard said, already walking backwards towards the door, "I told my sister to not wait up, which means she'll be sitting on couch with her arms crossed and waiting to yell at me."

He was right.

"I told you not to wait up," Leonard said once he was back in his own apartment.

"We're not ignoring this!" Lisa said angrily, letting her arms fall to her sides as she stood from the couch, "We're not ignoring that _you told Sara_!"

"It's not a big deal," Leonard said, refusing to meet his sister's eyes as he brushed past her.

"It _is_ a big deal, Lenny!" Lisa exclaimed. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back around so he faced her, "Too many people know who you are! First it was Barry Allen, who was actively working against you for the first three months you knew him. Now it's Sara, who is not only a cop, but the _leader_ of the force trying to bring you down."

"I have it under control," he growled, wrenching his arm out of Lisa's grip.

He stalked into his room knowing full well that he definitely didn't have anything under control.

He couldn't control earlier when he'd flinched, not at the pain of hydrogen peroxide against an open wound, but at the electric shock that had passed through his entire body when Sara had touched him.

He couldn't control how right the felt about telling her about Captain Cold.

He couldn't control how right he felt about _Sara_.

God, he was screwed.

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed! Thanks again for 1k on Tumblr!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Guess who's late againnnn**

* * *

After Leonard left, Sara tried to sleep, but all her attempts resulted in tossing and turning and kicking the blankets until they fell to the floor. She turned to pacing, first back and forth across her room, and then around the whole apartment.

It was strange to think that not even eight hours ago, Laurel and Tommy and Lisa and Leonard had been at her house, all sitting around the table in her dining room eating dinner together,

Not even eight hours ago, Leonard was just Leonard. He wasn't an ex-member of the Legion of Doom. He wasn't saving the city, and the city didn't need to be saved. He wasn't Captain Cold. Now, he was all of those things and somehow, maybe, more?

Sara found herself leaning against Avery's open doorway. She took a few silent steps into the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed.

She'd gone to sleep with her thumb in her mouth, but it had since fallen out, her hand inches away from her face and her lips parted.

As Sara watched her daughter sleep, she reached out her hand and pushed a stray curl away from her face.

It had been so long since she talked about Avery's father.

It was oddly…freeing, as if the stress and shame of his memory took the form of a weight on Sara's shoulders that had just been alleviated.

She'd never talked about him before, not even to Laurel, who she told everything, and the person she finally did tell was of all people, _Leonard Snart_.

Suddenly, Sara knew what she wanted to do, what she'd perhaps wanted to do this whole time but just hadn't realized yet.

She stood from Avery's bed and left the room, closing the door softly behind her. She made a beeline for the living room, where, lying facing down on the coffee table, her phone was waiting for her.

She yanked it out of its charger and turned it on, dialing a number she realized she had memorized.

It rang for several seconds and just before Sara was going to hang up, it stopped ringing.

"Hello," came the groggy yet immediately recognizable voice of Leonard Snart.

"Len," she said, "Hi, it's me."

"Are you aware that it's almost three in the—"

"I want to help you," Sara interrupted.

"Help me with what?"

"Your…mission or whatever you're calling it," Sara replied, "I want to help. I want to stop Merlyn."

Leonard was silent for a moment, finding it harder to process things in his state of fatigue.

"Look, you can't possibly expect me to make a decision like that at this time of night," he said, "Let me think it over and I'll call you tomorrow."

"Okay," Sara replied, nodding vigorously even though she knew he couldn't see her.

"Go to sleep Lance," Leonard said.

Sara heard a click and then the long dial tone that persisted until she hung up the phone. She placed it back on the coffee table and let out a long exhale. She glanced at the clock and saw that it was quarter to three in the morning.

A wave of exhaustion washed over her, and she finally went to her room and climbed into bed. She was asleep in moments

While Sara was finally able to sleep, Leonard was now the one now unable to get any shut-eye. He lay still in bed for upwards of twenty minutes, but…nothing.

He sat up and switched on the lamp. His mind was filled with thoughts of his phone call with Sara.

Her request came out of nowhere, and yet it didn't surprise him in the slightest. He wished he knew just as well how to answer her.

It would be ridiculous to accept, right?

It would be completely insane to let her join the mission, wouldn't it?

It could potentially endanger her, not to mention Avery, and besides, none of this involved her. Why make it involved her if it didn't have to?

But on the other hand, what power did her have that would stop her? He knew by now that Sara was not going to back down until she got what she wanted; if she wanted to defeat Merlyn, she would.

But was that reason enough to accept?

He picked his phone up from the beside table and switched it on.

And then off.

And then on again.

He scrolled through his contacts, his finger hovering over Sara's name momentarily before continuing down the list until he found the name he was looking for.

 _Mick Rory_

The phone rang once before it was picked up by Mick and Leonard was greeted by a din so loud, he had to hold the phone several inches away from his face.

"Snart," he heard Mick yell, "Tha' you?"

"Yeah, Mick," Leonard said, holding the phone to his ear again, "It's me. Where are you? Why's it so loud?"

"Hang on!" Mick shouted, "I'm at this killer club in Gotham City, but it's a little loud!"

Slowly, the sounds of heavy music and cheering faded into the background.

"Okay, that's better. What d'you need, Snart?"

"I need to pick your brain about a situation I'm in."

"You need me to bail you out?"

"No, nothing like that. You remember when we ran into each other at the grocery store a few weeks ago?"

"Yeah."

"Remember the woman I was standing with?" he didn't wait for a response, "Her name's Sara and she wants to help me stop Merlyn from blowing up Central City."

"Woah, your wife wants to help you save the city?"

"She's not my—forget it," Leonard shook his head in defeat, "Yes, she wants to help, and I haven't answered yet. I want a second opinion. Should I say yes?"

"I dunno," Mick said, and Leonard could practically hear him shrug, "You'd be working together a lot. You'd pretty much be partners. Is that something you want?

"I don't know," Leonard answered, "I haven't really thought about it."

That was sort of a lie. He _had_ thought of waking up next to her, helping her make breakfast and get Avery to school. He'd thought of greeting her when she got home from work, making dinner with her, putting Avery to bed — reading her a bedtime story, falling asleep with Sara by his side.

But he didn't think that was the type of partner Mick was referring to.

"Well, as someone who was your partner for a while, I'll just say that when you work with someone, you become a team. You pick your teammates wisely, if you think they'll end up makin' your team stronger. If you think Sara will make your team stronger, then I say go for it."

Leonard was silent for a moment, processing what Mick had told him. The man had never been particularly profound, but he had his moments.

"I gotta go, Snart," Mick said, "Some babe says she can make chains of maraschino cherry stems with her tongue."

 _Click_

Okay, so the moments were fleeting…

So Leonard should let Sara help him. He certainly wanted to, and he knew just from what he'd seen in the warehouse earlier that evening that she could hold her own in a fight.

There was still the small issue that was Avery, but Merlyn had never even threatened to go after Lisa. Why should that be any different for Avery?

So he should say yes. He should call Sara tomorrow morning and tell her that he wanted to work with her.

That's what he _should_ have done.

He should have just called her. It was the plan, it's what he was supposed to do, but then at the last minute, he went over to her apartment.

After he knocked on the door, he heard the telltale sounds of little feet pattering against the floor and the door was thrown open by Avery.

"Lenny!" Avery cried, flinging herself at his legs "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to talk to your mom," Leonard answered.

"Avery," Sara called from down the hallway, "I really hope you didn't just open that door!"

She appeared in the living room, took one look at the wide open front door, and let out an exasperated sigh.

"Avery, I swear, one day you're gonna get kidnapped and I'm gonna be really sad."

"Mommy look!" Avery exclaimed, either ignoring or not hearing her mother, "Lenny's here!"

"I can see that," Sara nodded, "I think he's here so I can check up on his leg."

"Right, 'cause you shot him."

"Yes, thank you for bringing that up again," she replied, "Why don't you go play in your room while I talk to Leonard."

"Nope, I'm good out here," Avery said, taking Leonard's hand in hers.

Sara raised her eyebrows, silently daring her daughter to say another word. Avery hastily left the room. Sara waited until she heard the sound of the door closing before turning back to Leonard. She gestured for him to sit on the couch. She sat in the adjacent chair, her legs pulled beneath her.

"So," she said once they were both settled, "I take it you're not here for me to check your leg."

"No" he affirmed, "I've been thinking about what you asked me last night."

"And?" Sara asked.

Leonard tried to read her expression, but he saw nothing. He couldn't see any emotion at all, no hopefulness, nor any frustration at his lack of response.

"Look," she said after the silence had stretched far too long for her liking, "I understand if I can't help you. It's an _insane_ request, especially since I have so much else going on," she gestured towards Avery's closed bedroom door, "But I can't stand people like Malcolm, who think that their own lives are worth so much more than everyone else's and that they can just take and take from the people around them and not give a shit about the pain they're causing. Stopping people like Merlyn is why I became a cop in the first place, and this could take me one step further. I thought I could give you advantage — even just a small one — because, you know, Malcolm and I are technically family."

"He'll figure it out eventually," Leonard said.

"We don't know that," Sara shook her head, "And like you said last night, if we can't stop him, we can at least slow him down." She took a deep breath. "Anyway, I get it if you have to say no. It's okay."

"I didn't…come here…to say no," Leonard said, struggling to find the right words. Sara raised her eyebrows, "I do want to work with you. I actually think you could help."

"Wow," Sara said, "This is not how I imagined this conversation going."

"You really thought I'd say no?" Leonard smirked.

"Well I thought you'd be at least a little cautious about letting someone you've only known a month help you save an entire city's worth of people."

"Are you trying to get me to change my mind?"

Sara rolled her eyes.

"So," she said, "What's the plan?"

"What?"

"You know, the big, over-arching plan to stop Merlyn and save the city."

"What makes you think I have a plan?" Leonard asked.

"Because you're _you_ ," Sara said, "Don't forget, I'm still the head of the Captain Cold case. I know how you operate."

"Then why did it take so long for you to catch me?" Leonard asked. Sara was not amused.

"What's your plan, Snart?"

"Fine," he began, "A few weeks ago someone tipped me off that Malcolm is coming to Central City. He's finally advanced far enough to come here and start building the thing that's going to destroy the city."

"And that is?"

"He calls it a Markov device, and apparently it has the power to generate an earthquake so strong it will level the entire city."

"This is something that exists?" Sara asked skeptically.

"Yes, and Merlyn's been having the materials shipped to where he's building it, and in a couple months, he'll have all the parts. Apparently, he's ready."

"Do you know where he's gonna build it?"

"Same place he's going to set it off," Leonard answered, "An abandoned storage warehouse by the docks."

"Wait, that's where—"

"That's where I was last night. I had one shot to case the building, and that was it."

"Oh," Sara said.

"Anyway," Leonard continued, "It hasn't been used for years, but now—"

"Now it's occupied by a psychopath who wants us all dead for his personal gain," Sara finished, "So how do we stop him? Steal his materials? Storm the warehouse?"

Leonard gave her a pointed look.

"Things can be replaced and Merlyn's a trained fighter. No, what we do is we wait. We wait until he's done building the Markov device and then we take it and destroy it."

"That's it?" Sara asked.

"It won't be as easy as it sounds. He'll have guards, security systems. I lost my one chance at casing the building — thanks for that, by the way — so besides the schematics of the building, we'd be going in blind.

Sara nodded.

"You still in?" Leonard asked her, noticing a bit of uncertainty on her face. She straightened.

"Yes," she said, putting as much finality into the words as she could, "I want to help you save the city."

* * *

Several weeks went by. Leonard found himself spending more and more time at the apartment across the hall.

He'd go over when Sara got home from work with Avery in tow. He ate dinner with them, sometimes helping Sara cook. He helped Avery with another project for school, one in which they had to make different "storms" in plastic bottles. He even had a standing invitation to Sara and Avery's movie nights, and one Friday evening while they were watching the first Harry Potter movie, a particular scary scene involving a mirror and a man with two faces had Avery burying her face in Leonard's neck and asking him to tell her when it was over.

Later, after Avery had been put to bed, Sara and Leonard planned how they would take down Merlyn. They poured over the schematics of the warehouse, creating first, second, third plans, expecting that things would go sideways and refusing to let any of it stop them.

Lisa Snart was aware that her brother's presence in her own apartment was lacking.

She knew Leonard had involved Sara in his plan to defeat Merlyn — she didn't exactly approve, but she also trusted her brother's judgement, and if he thought letting Sara help him was a good idea, he must have a good reason.

Lisa thought the changes happening to her brother went beyond just this mission. Whenever Leonard was home, he was talking about his last visit with the Lance's. Over breakfast, he updated her on Sara's battle with Avery over the ballet dress, which Avery was still refusing to take off. On the way to S.T.A.R. Labs, he told her all about how Avery had learned her first curse word, and, much to Sara's annoyance, had taken to repeating it to everyone she met.

Lisa loved Sara and Avery too, and while she could see Sara's appeal — she was young and gorgeous and kind-hearted and seemed to accept Leonard for who he _is_ , not who he _was_ — she was surprised that Leonard's interest was matched for Avery as well.

Lisa knew she probably should be more suspicious of what was happening in the apartment across the hall, but instead she was just happy for her brother. Whatever would happen in the future, Leonard seemed happier than he ever had _now_ , and that's what matters.

Another person had learned of Leonard's choice of partner, and it was the same person who was never supposed to know.

Malcolm Merlyn had already known that Leonard was working against him — he was being pretty obvious — and he also knew that Leonard had told others about what he was doing.

Leonard's sister Lisa knew his plan, but besides that had been uninvolved. The Flash — Barry Allen — and his team knew as well, but they were too preoccupied with all the metahumans rampaging through Central City to really help him.

Those people had never been threats to what Malcolm was doing, so he left them alone.

Then, Leonard told Sara Lance.

Malcolm didn't know Sara very well; he could count on one hand the number of times he'd seen her. He knew she was a cop — a good one at that — and that she was a good mother to her daughter Avery. He had liked her.

Not anymore.

* * *

Sara had just put Avery to bed when her phone rang. She was expecting a call from her mother, so she waited longer than she normally would have to answer it, settling in on the couch with a glass of wine and preparing for a long, rather one-sided conversation with Dinah Lance.

When she did finally pick up her phone, her heart dropped into her stomach.

 _Malcolm Merlyn_ was calling her.

A million thoughts passed through her mind in the second it took for her to answer the phone.

Why was he calling her? He had her number because they were family (a few years ago, Laurel had ended up sick in the hospital with no way of contacting Sara; she and Malcolm had exchanged numbers just in case something similar ever happened again), but he'd never called her before. Did he find out that she was helping Leonard?

But then the second had passed and she'd answered the phone.

"Hello?" she said tentatively.

"Hello Sara," Malcolm said.

Sara was very glad this conversation was happening over the phone, because the surprise on her face at his casual, friendly tone would be evident on her face.

"I'm just calling to say hello," Malcolm continued, "I know you recently visited with my son and daughter-in-law. Tommy said he had a good time."

"Oh, okay, well tell him I say thanks," Sara said, hoping that this was the only reason Merlyn was calling her.

"He said your new place is nice," he said.

"Yeah, I like it," Sara replied, nodding.

"You know, I'll be in Central City in a few days," he said casually, He continued to speak but Sara couldn't hear him through the frantic buzzing in her ears. A few _days_? She and Leonard were supposed to have a few more weeks! Now they were down to just a few days, "Maybe I could stop by."

"What?" Sara shook her head to clear her mind, "Oh, uh, maybe."  
"Well, I'll let you go," he replied.

"Have a good night," Sara said, grateful that the conversation had gone the way it had.

"Oh, one more thing," Merlyn added, "I know you're working with Leonard Snart."

"What?" Sara said, unsure of what else to say.

"Don't play dumb, and don't think I wouldn't find out. There is no way to hide anything from me. I know everything.

 _"_ _I know you're working with Leonard Snart"_

* * *

 **The Harrison Wells in this story is Earth-2 Wells, btw, mostly because he's been my favorite of all the ones we've seen on the Flash**


	7. Chapter 7

_"I know you're working with Leonard Snart."_

There was no time for Sara to respond before there was a click and the line went dead.

Sara sat frozen for a moment before jumping to her feet.

What was she going to do? What were _they_ going to do?

She picked up her phone again and opened the text conversation she had with Leonard.

 _emergency_ , she texted him, knowing that he would understand.

There was a knocking on her door in a matter of minutes.

"What happened?" he immediately asked, not even inside her apartment yet.

"Merlyn called me," she said, opening the door wider to let him in.

"He what?"

"He _called_ me," Sara repeated. "He knows I'm working with you."

"How did he find out?" Leonard asked.

"He didn't say," she shook her head, "but the real reason I texted you is because he told me he'll be in Central City in a couple _days_!"

"What?" Leonard narrowed his eyes, "No, we're supposed to have two more weeks!"

"Apparently not," Sara replied, "We only have a few days to plan now. What are we gonna do? We're not gonna have enough time! He's gonna start building the Markov device and then we're screwed and so is the _entire city_!"

"Sara," Leonard said, instinctively placing a hand on her arm to quiet her. She froze and Sara felt her lips involuntarily part as their eyes met, "Relax."

Sara felt herself nodding.

"Look," he said slowly, "Why don't we sleep on it and talk about tomorrow morning. We'll be fine. We'll figure this out."

"Okay," Sara replied, "Okay."

Leonard began to move towards the door.

"Get some sleep, Sara."

So Sara went to bed, but she didn't sleep. Her mind was filled with thoughts of Merlyn and how she and Leonard were going to have to adjust the plans they had been formulating for weeks.

By the time she finally fell asleep, she was soon woken by a well-rested four year old who was frantic for her Sunday waffles.

Leonard came over as Sara was moving the dirty dishes from breakfast into the dishwasher.

"Mommy!" Avery cried, and Sara turned to see Avery dragging Leonard by the arm across the living room, "Look, Lenny's here!"

There was a reason Sara and Leonard did all their planning at night. Avery had a teensy-tiny obsession with Leonard. Whenever he was around she had to be hanging around by his side, wrapped around his leg or holding onto his arm.

While Sara was glad Avery liked Leonard, she also had to admit that her daughter's presence didn't make saving the city any easier.

They tried to work for a little while, but every time Sara put Avery in her room, a few minutes later she would end up in Leonard's lap or holding his hand.

After Sara had set Avery down in front of the TV for the ninth time, Leonard got an idea.

"How about this," he said, "Do you want to meet the Flash?"

"Wait, _the Flash_ the Flash?" Sara asked, her eyes widening in disbelief.

"Sure," he said casually, "He's been giving me a hand with the mission since I started it. His lab would give us a good place to work."

So Sara dropped Avery off with Lisa, and she and Leonard headed off to S.T.A.R. Labs.

Almost the second he pulled up to the building, the Flash had zipped up to them.

"Snart," he said. Sara could just make out the red mask underneath his vibrating face.

"Don't worry Allen, not here to steal anything," Leonard rolled his eyes, "By the way, I think you know Sara."

"What?" Sara asked as the Flash groaned.

"Snart, you have to stop telling people who I am," he said.

"Who are you?" Sara asked him.

"If you're referring to my sister," Leonard responded to the Flash, "I'm pretty sure it was Ramon who told her."

"Still," he protested.

"Who are you?" Sara repeated above them both.

The Flash sighed and then pulled his mask off.

"Hey Sara," Barry Allen said sheepishly.

"Barry," Sara stammered. The surprise didn't last long though, the more she thought about it, the more it made sense.

"May I suggest we take this inside," Leonard said lazily, "I'm getting bored talking to you through a car window."

Barry, moving at a normal speed, led them through S.T.A.R. Labs to the cortex, where Sara was introduced to Caitlin Snow, Cisco Ramon, and Harrison Wells. Much to her surprise, her boss, Joe West, was also there. That took some explaining on his part, but she was able to comprehend it all — her coworker and her boss working with some of the smartest people in the country, if not the world, to defeat metahumans — relatively quickly.

If Sara had come here a month ago, she would have been much more thrown off by all of this, but now she lived in a world where metahumans were a normalcy and her neighbor across the hall was the same person she was trying to apprehend at work and her sister's father-in-law was actively trying to destroy the city.

Nothing fazed her anymore.

They all talked about the plan, about how they only had a few days to figure out how to save the city.

Sara appreciated the intellectual input of Harrison, Caitlin, and Cisco, all of whom were admittedly smarter than her and provided a much needed scientific outlook to the situation.

After several hours, they had finally cemented a plan in place.

Now all they had to do was wait.

That was Sunday.

On Wednesday, Leonard was tipped off that Merlyn had arrived in Central City.

They gave him two days to build the Markov device, and then, Friday evening, Avery was dropped off at Dinah Lance's for the night and Leonard and Sara were on their way to the warehouse where the Markov device was being kept.

"The security cameras will go out all at the same time with one shot to the control panel," Leonard whispered to Sara, recounting details they'd both gone over several times, "Then we have three minutes until Merlyn is notified of the problem with the cameras. We have another five minutes before he gets here, so we have eight minutes to cut the security cameras, take out all the guards, grab the Markov device, and get out."

"And Cisco's our getaway driver but Barry can't help because there's a metahuman in downtown Central City and it's breaking everything," Sara rattled off, "I know the plan, Leonard."

They were standing on the roof of the building across the street from the warehouse, and an open window gave them a perfect view of the security cameras' control panel.

"You sure you can make the shot?" Leonard asked for the umpteenth time. The mission was dependent on Sara being able to lodge a bullet in the control panel from all they way up here: on the roof of the building across the street. If Sara missed her mark, they were screwed, and Leonard wasn't used to putting so much blind trust in one person.

"Yes, I'm sure," Sara replied, but she couldn't hide the uncertainty in her voice. She knew she was a good shot, and she had a straight path from the roof to the control panel, but there was so much weight on this shot. If she missed, the guards would be alerted and Merlyn would be on his way over to the warehouse in seconds. If she did make the shot, Leonard would take out the guard watching the cameras and then they'd be in.

"You don't sound sure," Leonard pointed out.

"I shot _you_ ," Sara reminded him, trying to put much more confidence in the words that she actually felt, "While you were moving, and from around a corner."  
"Okay," Leonard put his hands up in surrender, "I believe you. I'll see you down there."

Leonard turned towards the metal door leading back into the building. Just before he left, Sara said,

"Good luck, Leonard."

"Good luck, Sara," he nodded. He let the door swing closed behind him. Now all Sara had to do was wait until she saw Leonard get into position just outside the big utility door to the warehouse.

She heard a crackling in her ear and remembered the communication system Cisco had insisted on.

"Oh my God," she groaned, "Will I ever get a break from you?"

"Hopefully not," Leonard replied.

"Okay," Cisco's voice came through, "I heard enough of the two of you flirting at S.T.A.R. Labs."

"We're not flirting," Sara insisted. Cisco didn't respond. The only sound that came through the comm was the grating sound of crunching food. "Are you _eating_ , Cisco?"

"Every getaway driver needs snacks," Cisco said, and they heard the rustling of a plastic bag, "What else am I supposed to do while you guys are saving the city."

"Maybe not distract the people who are saving the city," Leonard pointed out. He went quiet as another door opened. He was on the ground now, and Sara watched him cross the street and approach the warehouse.

He waited beside the door so as soon as he heard the gunshot, he'd go inside and take out the first guard.

"Ready when you are," he whispered.

Sara took her place on the edge of the roof. She had a straight shot to the control panel. She could see the guard sitting in a rolling office chair with his feet up on a metal desk and his hands comfortably behind his head. He'd clearly had a dull couple of days.

Well, it was about to get a lot more exciting.

Sara raised the gun so it was at eye level, and aimed for the control panel.

She took a deep breath, steadied her arm, and pulled the trigger.

She didn't get to see if she'd hit her target because as soon as the gunshot rang through the air, she'd taken off.

She yanked open the heavy metal door and ran down the stairs. The building had six floors, six flights of stairs.

By the fifth, the gun was in her pocket.

By the fourth, her throwing stars were in her hands.

Three.

"Did I make it?"

Two.

"Yes."

She jumped over the railing to the first floor and then she was out. The late-May air was warm, even at this late hour, and the humidity felt like a heavy wall she had to push through to get where she needed to go.

She made it into the building.

Leonard was waiting for her, regarding with distaste what appeared to be shards of ice.

The guard was nowhere to be found.

Sara forced the icky feeling that the sight of the ice evoked back down her throat as they moved through the warehouse.

"Six and a half minutes," Cisco said through the comms.

Before, the warehouse had been filled with aisles and aisles of metal shelves. Now, the center-most shelves had been cleared to make a basketball court sized space in the middle of the warehouse, along with a path from the utility door to the clearing wide enough for a relatively large truck to comfortably drive through.

There was a guard stationed at every corner, and another two around what was apparently the Markov device.

It was smaller than Sara expected, about the size and shape of an old box-TV, but visibly lighter.

She had trouble believing that such a small object could deliver such a horrible disaster, but she'd learned by now never to doubt Malcolm Merlyn's abilities.

Leonard shot at the first guard he saw, sending him flying back towards the wall behind him in a blast of ice. The noise attracted the rest of the guards and now they had a full-on brawl on their hands.

Everything was a blur. First she was fighting three guards, then two. Limbs were whirling through the air. She couldn't distinguish between friend or foe, only the damp moisture of her fist hitting bare, sweat-drenched flesh. Her own sweat was dripping into her eyes and mouth, the taste mixing with the tangy iron of blood when one of the guards socked her cheek with the side of his gun, leaving a long gash down her face.

She heard a few gun shots but didn't stop fighting.

" _Sara!_ " Leonard shouted as the man he had been fighting dropped to the ground, the bottom half of his body encased in ice, "Are you okay?"

"What are you talking about?"

She looked around her and saw all six guards on the ground. Four of them were at varying levels of "ice sculpture", one had a throwing star in his leg and another in his chest, and the last was lying on his side, his hands clutching his swollen face.

At this point, she became aware of a dull throbbing in her arm.

She looked towards her shoulder to see a dark red stain spreading across her grey sleeve.

"Oh," she said, realizing what Leonard had been referring to, "I didn't realize."

"Two minutes guys," Cisco said, "Get a move on."

"Go get the Markov device," Sara told Leonard.

A shuffling noise had them whipping around to see the last remaining guard getting to his feet. Sara instantly jumped into a fighting stance.

"Sara, your arm," Leonard protested.

"I'm fine," Sara waved him off, ignoring the searing pain that shot from her fingertips up to her shoulder as her well-aimed punch hit the guard square across the jaw, "Go get the Markov device!"

He hesitated for a moment, unsure if he wanted to leave her.

 _"Go!"_

Sara kicked the guard's legs out from under him. As the guard dropped to the floor, hitting the concrete with a loud crunch, Leonard took off towards the Markov device. He reached it in seconds. It wasn't anchored to the ground, most likely for the convenience of moving it if necessary. Leonard picked it up by a metal bar of its exo-structure. It was lighter than he'd expected, probably no more than fifty pounds.

"Merlyn's closing in on the front entrance," Cisco said through the comm, "I'm just outside the back door."

"Sara!" Leonard called.

"I know, I heard," Sara said. She aimed one more kick at the guard, knocking him unconscious before following Leonard out the door.

Cisco was waiting for them just outside the back door, just like he said. He was pulling away from the warehouse before they even had the car doors closed.

"How'd it go?" he asked as he swerved onto the road, "I see you got the Markov device."

"Just get to S.T.A.R. Labs," Leonard ignored him.

"Why?" Cisco replied.

"Sara here," he said emphatically, "got herself shot. We need some of Caitlin's medical expertise."

"I'm fine," Sara protested, but neither Cisco nor Leonard responded so she crossed her arms, sat further back in her seat, and resigned herself to a stubborn silence.

* * *

"You gave me a bit of a scare, Lance," Leonard said, "I thought you said you could hold your own in a fight."

"I can," Sara replied, "but that doesn't make you bulletproof."

"It does if you do it right."

They had made it back to S.T.A.R. Labs and were now in the building's makeshift medical room. Caitlin had extracted the bullet from Sara's arm, but Leonard had insisted on stitching up the wound himself.

 _"It'll be like old times,"_ he'd said, _"I'll stitch you up and we can tell each other our life stories."_

Sara didn't think there was anything left he didn't know.

"You're pretty good at this," Sara said, her head tipped to one side as she watched Leonard with the needle and thread.

"Well, you know how I feel about hospitals," he replied, "and it's not like I'm gonna let myself bleed out."

"So whenever you get shot you just stitch yourself up?" she asked in disbelief, "Isn't Lisa there? Couldn't she do it?"

"Lisa is not a huge fan of blood," he replied. Sara nodded.

They both were quiet, Leonard concentrating on the stitches, Sara lost in thoughts of the night they'd had.

"Almost done," he said after a quarter of an hour, "I just want to clean that cut on your cheek."

"I can do it, you don't have to."

But Leonard was already soaking a cloth in hydrogen peroxide.

"You really don't have to," Sara protested.

"I'm nothing if not thorough," he responded. In one hand he held the washcloth and in the other, he gently turned Sara's head so he could see the cut on her face.

"Ouch, he got you good," he commented, "This is gonna hurt."

He placed the washcloth on her cheek. She had to hold in a wince as the wound started to sting. She exhaled deeply through her nose, trying to keep her breaths steady.

"I told you," he said.

"It's not that bad," Sara tried to shrug, but winced as a shot of pain traveled up her arm.

"Sure."

After a few moments, Leonard had apparently decided that the cut was sufficiently cleaned because he stepped away from Sara.

"Am I clear to go, doc?" she joked.

"Not quite," he replied. He dropped the hydrogen peroxide-soaked washcloth in the sink and picked up another one, holding it under the running faucet. He wrung the cloth out and went back to Sara. He started to wipe away the dried blood that had dripped down her face.

He was surprisingly gentle. The hand that was not holding the cloth was cupping her face, his palm on her uninjured cheek. The feeling of his fingertips on her skin had her heart beating in a way that made her grateful she wasn't hooked up to a heart monitor.

He tipped her head upwards slightly to get at the blood that had trickled down her neck. She almost shuddered at his touch.

God, she wasn't _supposed_ to be feeling this way about him! He was supposed to be her neighbor-turned-partner. They were supposed to be saving the world together. Wouldn't that dynamic — a dynamic that was admittedly good — change if they were doing something else together?

That's not to mention Avery. Sara hadn't dated anyone since she had Avery. Sure, she'd gone on dates, but nothing had ever been long term. She'd never had to tell Avery anything. She'd never had to introduce her to a boy or girlfriend.

Would Avery be happy if Sara was dating Leonard? She knew Avery liked him, but she wasn't sure she even knew what dating was. She was, after all, only four. How would she even react if she told her something like that? And what if they broke up? How would she explain that to Avery?

Sara had to hold in a scoff. She and Leonard weren't even dating and yet here she was thinking about what she'd do if they broke up.

"You alright, Lance?" Leonard asked. He'd gotten up to rinse the blood-stained washcloth in the sink.

"Yeah," she nodded, "It's just been a long day."

"Speaking of," he said, "Caitlin has pain meds for you and she says you're staying here for the night."

"Why?"

"I find that not questioning what these people say makes life a lot easier," he advised her. He left the washcloth in the sink along with the first and headed towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Sara asked.

"I have to go work out my bargain with the guy who'd been keeping tabs on Merlyn for us."

"Why?"

"I deal in quantifiable transactions," he answered, "It makes sure I never owe anyone anything."

Sara tried to not wonder what it meant that he had never once offered to pay her.

* * *

Leonard didn't return to S.T.A.R. Labs until the next morning. He ignored the hellos of Caitlin, Cisco, and Barry and went straight to the med room.

What are you doing, Sara?" Leonard asked warily. He'd walked in to see Sara pulling on a sweater, her car keys in her hand.

"I gotta go pick up Avery from my mom's house," she said, wincing as she put on her boots, "She has to give a lecture today and probably shouldn't do that with a four year old."

"You really shouldn't drive with your arm like that," he replied, "Not to mention the impressive mix of pain meds in your system."

"What shouldn't she do?" Caitlin entered the room in a white lab coat, "How's our patient?"

"I have to go pick up Avery," Sara said.

"Uh, no, you can't go anywhere," Caitlin said, "Your cells are in a critical state of regeneration. To leave and reopen the wound — possibly exposing the vulnerable cells to bacteria — could be detrimental to your recovery."

"Why don't I get Avery," Leonard suggested, surprised to hear the words come out of his mouth. Sara was just as thrown off.

"You'd really do that?" she asked skeptically.

"Well it's better than the alternative."

Sara was silent for a moment, thinking it over.

"Fine," she said, sighing. She handed him her keys, "Take my car. It has the carseat in it. I'll text you my mom's address."

"I'll be back soon," he said as Caitlin eased Sara back onto the hospital bed.

* * *

Leonard drove to Dinah Lance's house outside of Central City. Sara must have let her mother know he was coming, because when he arrived, she opened her front door with a wide smile.

"You must be Leonard," she said, "I've heard so much about you. Avery has quite the little infatuation with you. It's so good to finally meet you!"

"Uh, nice to meet you too," he said uncomfortably.

Avery came bounding down the hallway, her backpack flying behind her.

"Lenny!"

"Avery," he said, "Ready to go?"

"Uh-huh," she nodded, "Where's Mommy?"

"She got held up at work so I'm here."

"Cool!" she said. She turned to hug Dinah, "Bye Grandma."

"Bye Avie," she said, "I'll see you soon."

"So what'd you do with your Grandma?" Leonard asked as they walked down the driveway. He helped her into the car and fastened all the straps and buckles on her carseat.

"We made cookies," Avery answered, "They're chocolate chip and I have a whole box of them in my bag."

"Wow," he replied.

"Yeah, and we played a board game and watched a movie."

"What movie?"

"Moana, the new Disney princess one," she answered, "It's really good. It's about…"

Avery talked about her movie for a little while before switching over to another topic.

He'd never been alone with Avery — besides the day she'd escaped over to his apartment when Quentin and Sara had been arguing. It felt like that day had been years ago, but really it'd only been a few months. So much had happened in only a few months.

Avery babbled to herself the entire car ride to S.T.A.R. Labs and when she arrived, she insisted on holding Leonard's hand as they walked through the curving hallways to the Cortex.

"Where are we?" she asked, peering curiously around her.

"We're at where your mom worked yesterday," he answered.

They turned into the Cortex.

"Avery, this is Caitlin, Cisco, Barry, and Wells," he turned to face them, "This is Sara's daughter Avery."

"Oh my God," Caitlin said, walking around the curved desc to stand in front of them, "She's so cute!"

"Yes, she's adorable but are we really sure this is a good idea," Wells asked, "You all know I'm opposed to more people knowing the Flash's true identity than is absolutely necessary, especially when they're four."

"She'll be fine," Leonard said, "Look, Avery, do you know what the Flash is?"

"It's the thing that makes me blink when we take school pictures," Avery said matter-of-factly.

"See, it'll be fine," he said, mostly addressing Wells, "We're gonna go see Sara."

They walked to the med room, where Sara was sitting in bed with a book and an almost empty cup of coffee.

"Mommy!" Avery exclaimed. She ran across the room and climbed onto the bed.

"Avery!" Sara smiled and then winced as Avery tried to hug her, "You gotta be careful of my arm for a little while, honey."

"How come you're in a hospital, Mommy?" she asked, her eyes full of concern, "Are you sick?"

"No, baby," Sara reassured her, wrapping her arms around her daughter, "I'm not sick. I just got a little hurt at work last night. That's why I'm here instead of at the apartment and why you're gonna have to be careful around my arm until it gets all better."

"Oh," Avery replied. She leaned forward to inspect the bandage on Sara's arm, "Can we go home now."

"Yes, we can go home," Sara replied, "Guess who's driving us."

"Lenny?"

"Yeah," she replied, "Did you have fun on your ride with him?"

"Uh-huh," she nodded, "He's a good driver."

"Oh good, thanks for letting me know."

Leonard and Avery waited for Sara to pull her combat boots on and collect her stuff.

They all walked back to the Cortex where Wells and Caitlin were poring over cellular diagrams on an interactive whiteboard and Cisco and Barry were in the middle of a heated ping pong match.

"We're gonna head out," Sara told the Flash and his team, "Thanks for all your help."

"Hey, anytime," Barry said, putting down his paddle.

Caitlin waited until they had left and were out of earshot before she said, "I give them two months."

"Two months until what?" Cisco asked.

"They're together."

* * *

Much of the car ride was spent listening to Avery recount her night with Dinah to her mother. Sara commented every once in a while, but mostly she let Avery talk, and talk she did — all the way home and into the apartment. When they got inside, she hugged Leonard goodbye and then ran into her room to reacquaint herself with her toys.

Leonard lingered in the doorway for a moment.

"So," he said to Sara.

"We did it," she finished. He nodded, "You're gonna keep the Markov device until we figure out what to do with it."

"You trust me not to use it?"

"I always do."

Leonard nodded.

"Get some rest, Sara," he said.

"You don't need to worry about me, Snart."

"I always do."


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: The TV show Lucifer (which I definitely recommend) has been a huge inspiration for this story, which a few people have noticed (hey guys). This chapter in particular has a lot of references to the show, so if anything seems familiar, that's where it's from :)**

* * *

The weekend went by quickly and soon it was Monday morning and Sara getting Avery ready for school.

Avery was in her room getting dressed. Sara was making her lunch: a peanut butter sandwich, strawberries, crackers, and one of the last remaining chocolate chip cookies she'd made with her grandmother.

As Sara was cutting up strawberries, she looked at the clock and saw that it was quarter to seven. Avery's preschool was flexible with arrival times, so it wouldn't matter if they got there a little later than normal, but Sara definitely wouldn't be at work by seven-thirty, especially since she hadn't tried driving with her injured arm yet.

With one hand, she dialed Joe West's number. As it rang, she balanced the phone between her cheek and her shoulder.

"Hey Joe," she said when he answered.

"Lance," he said, "I hope you're calling to let me know you're not coming to work today."

"Nope," Sara replied, "Just letting you know I'll be in a little late. I still haven't dropped Ave off at school yet."

All she heard from Joe's end was a disappointed sigh and a click as he hung up the phone.

Sara shrugged and continued making Avery's lunch, ignoring the sharp pain in her arm.

About five minutes later, there was a knocking on her door. She opened it, wincing as the twisting motion pulled against her stitches. Joe strode into the apartment.

"Joe?" she said, the mix of pain meds in her system dulling her ability to process what was happening.

"I'm here to bring Avery to school," he said.

"What?" Sara asked, blinking several times to make sure she wasn't actually hallucinating (at this point, she wouldn't be surprised).

"And," he continued, "I'm making sure you don't come to work today. Forty eight hours ago, you had a bullet in your arm. For most people, that's excuse enough to take a month off. You can take at least a day. Plus," he said, "I'm pretty sure you're high on morphine right now, so you _can't_ drive."

"Joe—" Sara protested.

"I'm not taking no for an answer."

Avery ran into the room wearing the outfit Sara had laid out for her: a pair of blue and white striped shorts, a pale yellow sweater and white canvas sneakers.

"Joe!" she screeched, jumping into his arms.

"Avie," Joe lifted her up, "Guess who's taking you to school today?"

"You?" she guessed.

"Smart girl," he replied, putting her down, "Go get your coat and your backpack and then we can go."

Avery pulled on her pink zip-up hoodie and slung her backpack over her shoulders.

"C'mere," Sara said. She pulled Avery into a hug, kissing the top of her head, "Have fun at school today. I'll see you later."

"Bye, Mommy," Avery smiled. She left the apartment and started walking down the hallway. Joe was right behind her until he reached the door. He turned back to Sara.

"I'll bring her home too," he said, "Don't worry about it."

"You don't have to—"

"Relax, Lance," he said sternly, "I mean it."

So, reluctantly and with as much contempt as she could muster, she relaxed — well, at least for the most part. While she watched reruns of old shows and drank hot chocolate (it may be nearly June, but Leonard had taught her how to make the best hot chocolate from scratch and ever since, she'd been near-addicted to it), she was letting the pain meds wear off on their own. The numb pins and needles in her arm were turning into a dull throb, but she'd rather have a fully-functional mind and deal with a mild amount of pain than the opposite.

A few hours passed by. Sara fell asleep on the couch and was woken by a vibrating sensation coming from the quilt on top of her. She groggily fished through her blankets until she found her phone.

The screen lit up and her blood started to boil as she recognized Malcolm Merlyn's number.

"What do you want, Merlyn?" Sara demanded.

The voice that answered her was not Malcolm Merlyn's.

"Mommy?"

Sara's heart dropped into her stomach.

"Avery?" she stammered, "Are you okay?"

"Mommy, I'm scared," Sara could hear her voice shaking, as if her entire body was trembling.

"I know you're scared. You're going to be okay. I'm gonna come get you, okay?"

"Okay."

"Avie, can you put Uncle Malcolm back on the phone now? I need to talk to him."

"Okay."

Sara heard rustling noises and Avery faintly saying, "My mommy wants to talk to you," and the sound of the phone changing hands.

"Lance," Merlyn said, "You'll never guess who I found at the preschool today."

"What do you want?" Sara growled.

"All I want is for you to know what it's like to have something important to you taken away. It's not pleasant, is it?"

"You're crossing a line, Merlyn! She never did anything to you!"

"I'll give you back what's yours if you give me back what's mine. You know what's mine because you took it from me. Now we'll both get to experience the joy of getting what we want together."

Sara tipped her head up to the ceiling, finding it hard to breath through the constricting feeling on her lungs.

"Okay," she said, nodding even though he couldn't see her, "Okay, I'll bring you the Markov device."

"Good. Now how hard was that?" Malcolm replied, and Sara could practically feel the simpering smirk on his face through the phone, "Oh, and another thing: come alone, or she dies. You know where the warehouse is."

There was a clicking sound as the call ended. Sara inhaled shakily, realizing as she did that she'd been holding her breath.

As if on autopilot, Sara left her apartment. In a whirlwind, she crossed the hallway and started pounding on Leonard and Lisa's door. She barely avoided punching Leonard in the face when he yanked it open.

"If you're looking for Lisa," he said, leaning against the doorframe, "don't get too excited. She's actually at work for once."

"Leonard," Sara ignored him, "I need the Markov device."

"Why?" he asked.

"I need to," she hesitated, "to examine it. Right now, it's important."

Leonard smirked, leaning against the doorframe, "You're lying."

"No I'm not," Sara replied, a little too quickly. She could even sense herself not meeting his eyes.

"Now why on Earth would a cop like you need a machine like that? Got plans to sell it to some sort of criminal underground? Is the police system as corrupt as I think it is?"

He was dawdling, idling, on purpose. He knew it, she knew it and there was nothing she could do to stop him but tell Leonard what he wanted to know.

"Merlyn took Avery," Sara said urgently.

The smirk on Leonard's face disappeared, replaced with cold, hard anger that glittered in his eyes and emanated from his entire body.

"He did _what_?" Leonard hissed.

"He has Avery and he won't give her back until he gets the Markov device. I have to give it to him. I have to get her back."

Leonard said nothing, but turned and disappeared inside his apartment. He returned less than a minute later in his blue parka and with the cold gun in its holster, holding the Markov device in both hands.

"I'm coming with you."

"No, you can't," Sara shook her head, "I promised I'd come alone."

"It'll be a cold day in Hell when I let you go after Malcolm Merlyn by yourself."

"What choice do I have? Avery's life is at stake. I have to follow the rules. I'm sorry."

Leonard knew that the more time he spent arguing with her, the more likely it became that Sara would get a body back instead of her daughter.

"Don't apologize. I understand," he said, handing her the Markov device. Sara took it from him.

" _Thank you_ ," she said, her words full of desperation. Before Leonard could say more, Sara had turned and hurried down the hallway. He waited until she had disappeared into the stairwell before leaving his apartment, slamming the door behind him.

He climbed into his car, putting the cold gun on the passenger seat next to him as he started the engine.

After peeling out of the parking lot, he caught up with Sara quickly, but lagged a few minutes behind so she wouldn't notice him.

They reached the warehouse in about twenty minutes, Leonard always a traffic light or two behind Sara.

He had to admit she had a point about following Merlyn's rules. Leonard normally didn't care about casualties. The way he saw it, the mission was worth a few lives, but when that life was Avery, it was a different story.

He waited until Sara drove her car through the warehouse's utility door and out of sight before pulling up to the building and parking next to the entrance. He shut the car off, but left the key in the ignition. He could already predict that things would go sideways and wanted to be ready for a quick getaway.

He didn't want to be seen in the open pathway, so he entered the warehouse through the side door. It opened to the room that housed the security camera's control panel, which had apparently never been repaired because the bullet hole from Sara's shot was still visible in the black metal machinery.

Leonard supposed there would be no reason to fix it since he and Sara had taken the Markov device.

He slid between two refrigerator sized crates. He was far enough away that Merlyn wouldn't know he was there, but close enough that if things got out of hand, he'd be there for backup.

He could just hear what was going on in the center of the warehouse.

"Okay Merlyn," Sara called as she stepped out of her car. She could see Avery sitting on a stomach-height crate. Her legs dangled at least two feet from the ground and Malcolm had to lift her to get her down. "I'm here. You happy?"

"Almost. You came alone. That's good," Merlyn said, "Where's the Markov device."

Sara shook her head, "Not without Avery."

Merlyn scoffed, "Come _on_."

"No. Give me Avery and you get your machine. That's the deal."

He rolled his eyes, but relinquished his hold on Avery's arm. Avery ran towards Sara who dropped to her knees and wrapped her arms around her daughter. She could feel Avery's heart pounding in her chest and her fingers gripping the back of her leather jacket.

Sara pulled away, leaving her hands on Avery's shoulders. She could see tears sparkling in her eyes, threatening to spill over.

"Avie, this is very important, so you need to listen," she said. Avery nodded, "I need you to play a game, okay? I need you to hide until I can come find you."

"Mommy, I don't wanna play a game," she shook her head and Sara could hear in her voice that she was going to start crying.

"I know you don't, honey, but you have to," Sara could hear the same sound in her own voice, "I need you to hide _really, really_ well, okay?"

Avery nodded. Sara pointed her in the direction of the utility door and watched her daughter run away from her.

She turned back to Merlyn, who was leaning against the crate with an expression of complete and utter boredom on his face.

"Cute," he smirked, "Now where's the Markov device?"

Sara moved to her car and popped open the trunk.

"It's there."

"Good," Malcolm replied, taking a few steps closer to get a better look into the car. Then, he reached into his coat, pulled out a shiny black gun, and pointed it directly at her heart.

* * *

Meanwhile, Avery was making her way through the aisles, looking for the exit to the warehouse. She thought she remembered how Malcolm had gotten her inside, but now she wasn't so sure. She had stopped at the meeting point of four different aisles. She knew one of them was right, she just couldn't figure out which one.

She heard the sound of footsteps behind her and felt her breath hitch in her throat. Slowly, she turned on her toes until she saw a familiar face.

Leonard was standing in the center of the aisle to her left.

Avery opened her mouth to call to him but he put a finger to his lips, shaking his head. He gestured for him to come over to him and she ran the distance, leaping into his arms. Leonard wasn't prepared for that, but recovered quickly, wrapping his arms around her back. Avery locked her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

"Are you okay?" he murmured into her hair. He felt her nod against his neck, "What about your mom?"

"I don't think so," Avery whispered, "I think she's in trouble."

"Me too, kid."

"Mommy told me to hide."

"I know she did." Leonard walked, still carrying Avery, to the two crates he'd been hidden between. He put her down and helped her into the hiding spot, "Stay here okay? Don't come out until your mom or I says to, okay? No one else."

"Okay," Avery whispered.

Leonard snuck around the outer edge of the warehouse. He caught glimpses of Malcolm pointing a gun at Sara and had to force down the impulse to run at him, rip the gun out of his hand, and get Sara to safety. He couldn't do that because Malcolm was the one with a gun. He was the one with the power to kill Sara if Leonard made the wrong move.

Sara was holding her own, though. Even looking down the barrel of a gun pointed at her heart, she hadn't taken a step back or flinched or showed any signs of fear at all. Leonard would have expected nothing less from Sara.

Leonard continued to creep around the shelves until he reached an aisle where a tall crate protruded into the path. With the box obscuring any view of the aisle, Leonard was able to move closer to the center of the warehouse without being seen, finally coming within earshot of the conversation between Malcolm and Sara.

"I half-expected you'd bring your boyfriend with you," Malcolm was saying, "Then I could take the two of you out together."

"He's not my boyfriend," Sara insisted, "and I didn't bring him with me. I followed the rules. I thought you would too."

"I have, actually," he replied, "I never said about sparing you, only her," he gestured with his gun in the direction Avery had ran off in, "Anyway, I'm sure the news of your death will draw Snart out in due time."

"Why are you doing this?"

"I really wish it didn't have to be this way," Malcolm said, not really answering her question.

"Sure," Sara scoffed.

"I like you, Sara. I really do. You've got spunk, drive. If I'm being honest, I sometimes wish my son were more like you. We could have been great allies, but that's the thing" he switched off the gun's safety, "your greatest allies can also be your greatest enemies, and you were certainly a stellar one."

He pulled the trigger. The gunshot rang out but Sara had already rolled away, predicting Malcolm's movements.

Leonard had to hold the edge of the crate to prevent himself from running out to help her. He knew that would only get Sara killed faster.

He moved out from behind the crate and crept down the aisle.

He saw what was going to happen next before it did.

Sara had just rolled to the ground to avoid Merlyn's bullet, but as she was standing again, he fired another one, twisting backwards to point the gun in Sara's direction as he moved the opposite way towards the car and the Markov device. He didn't even look to see if the bullet — another meaningless bullet, not the first, never the last — had hit its target.

His first and only concern was the Markov device. Everything, everyone else was a mere pawn, first to be taken out, first to be forgotten.

He had shot wide — perhaps on purpose, perhaps not — but when Sara jumped to the side, thinking she had moved out of the bullet's path, she had in fact placed herself right in its line of fire.

Leonard watched the bullet tear through the air, watched Sara's lips part as she too realized what was about to happen.

He could see she was trying to get out of the bullet's way, but with the world moving in slow motion, she just couldn't move fast enough.

They both watched the bullet lodge itself in Sara's abdomen.

She screamed in pain as she dropped to the ground.

"Sara!" Leonard snarled. In a millisecond the cold gun was out of its holster, the safety was off and he'd fired at Malcolm.

He tried to aim for the man's heart, but shot too low in his rush to get to Sara, instead hitting Merlyn's legs with a blast of ice.

He fell to the ground but continued army-crawling towards the Markov device.

Leonard wanted to go after him, to take him down once and for all, but then he caught sight of the blood that had started pooling around Sara, the dark red stain steadily spreading across the concrete and soaking her grey t-shirt. She hadn't moved since she'd fallen to the floor.

Leonard kicked Malcolm's gun — the one he'd shot Sara with and then dropped when he'd been hit with the blast from the cold gun — across the warehouse. It skittered noisily against the cement floor before sliding under a shelf and out of sight. He knew Merlyn wouldn't go after it. Just like Leonard's priority was getting Sara to safety, Malcolm's priority was his mission, and as much as he wanted Sara and Leonard dead, he wanted even more to ensure the safety of his Markov device, so with a glare in Leonard's direction, he continued moving on his hands and knees towards Sara's car, where the Markov device was still visible in the trunk.

Leonard ran to Sara, crouching by her side. She had curled into a fetal position with her eyes squeezed shut. He could tell she was still conscious, but for how long she would stay that way he wasn't so sure.

"Lance," he said, "Stay with me. You're gonna be fine."

"Avery?" she muttered.

"She's fine. I found her, don't worry."

He jumped up and ran out the front utility door. He turned the car on, grateful that he left the key in the ignition. He drove the car through the wide garage door and stopped at the aisle where Avery was hidden.

"Avery," he called. He saw her head peer out from behind the refrigerator box, "You can come out now, but we have to go really fast."

She ran out from behind her space between the boxes and Leonard stepped out of the car to help her climb into the front passenger seat.

"Mommy says I'm not supposed to sit in the front seat," Avery said as Leonard moved the seat as far away from the airbag as it could go.

"I think she'll let it slide just this once," he said, getting back in the driver's seat. He directed the car as close to Sara as he could before jumping out of the car and running to her.

"Malcolm got away," Sara croaked and Leonard looked up to see that Malcolm and the Markov device were indeed gone. He must have gone out the back entrance while he was getting Avery.

"Go. Go after him," she said.

"Not a chance, Sara," he said, "I'm not leaving you."

Leonard carefully lifted Sara into his arms.

"Wait," she said before he started moving, "No hos—"

"No hospitals," he finished, "I know."

He carried Sara to the car and settled her gently across the back seat. He slammed the door shut and started backing the car out of the warehouse.

Avery turned in her seat to see her mother, pale and bleeding through her t-shirt. Sara's breaths had become shallow and rattling. Leonard knew he didn't have much time.

"Is Mommy gonna die?" Avery asked Leonard, looking up at him with wide blue eyes filled with fear.

"No," Leonard said without hesitation, "I'm not gonna let that happen."


	9. Chapter 9

Leonard sped away from the warehouse in the direction of S.T.A.R. Labs.

Avery had to fight hard the urge to turn around in her seat and look at her mother again. She could still picture her too-pale skin and pained expression, not to mention the dark red blood that stained the front of her shirt. She'd her hand pressed over where the bullet had entered her skin, but the pressure didn't keep blood from seeping between her fingers.

She didn't like that her mom — who was usually so tough and brave — looked so weak and scared.

So she didn't look back. She didn't need to. She already knew what she would see and she would remember for a very long time.

Leonard kept nervously glancing back at Sara through the rearview mirror. Lenny never looked nervous, Avery thought, so something must be really wrong.

In fact, Leonard's heart was pounding so hard he was sure Avery could hear it.

He wanted to floor it all the way to S.T.A.R. Labs, but he knew that was a bad idea for a number of reasons. For one, if he got pulled over, he'd have to explain to the officer why he had a person bleeding out in the back of his car. Worse, with the teeny Avery sitting in the front passenger seat, getting in a car accident could be deadly.

So he was sticking as close to the speed limit as he could.

As he neared the lab, he pulled his phone out of his coat pocket and dialed Barry's number.

"What do you want, Snart?" he asked, taking far too long to answer the phone than Leonard thought a speedster should.

"Are you at the lab?"

"Yes," Barry replied suspiciously.

"I need you to be ready outside when I get here."

"What? Why?"

"We had an incident with Merlyn. He shot Sara in the stomach. It's bad."

"Got it," Barry replied and the line went dead.

Leonard continued to S.T.A.R. Labs and the second he pulled into the driveway, there was a blur of red light and Sara was gone.

Trying to keep his hands steady on the wheel, he parked the car next to a side entrance. He got out and opened the back door to help Avery out of the car. She held very tightly onto his hand as he led her to the Cortex. Nobody was there when they arrived, but the door to the med room was closed and tall blue curtains were around the bed, blocking it from their view.

He tried not to think about what was happening behind the curtains. Instead, he focused on Avery, who still hadn't let go of his hand.

"Are you okay?" he asked, crouching down at her level, "Did Malcolm hurt you at all?"

She shook her head.

"What happened to Mommy?" she asked, "How come Uncle Malcolm took me away from school?"

Leonard was afraid she'd ask that question. He knew it was Sara's choice to decide how much and how little to tell Avery about what happened in the warehouse, but Sara was in surgery right now. She was fighting for her life and Avery knew it, and it wasn't fair to let her remain afraid and confused.

He sat down in one of the chairs along the side of the room and let Avery climb into his lap.

"Your Uncle Malcolm," he started, speaking slower than normal so he could choose his words carefully, "is not a good person. He has a lot of money and he used it to build a machine that would hurt a lot of people."

"Why?" Avery interrupted, following his every word with wide eyes.

"Why? Because he thought if people were afraid of him, he'd have more power," he answered, "Your mom and I were working together to stop Malcolm and take the machine from him, and we did, the night you stayed with your grandma."

"Is that how she hurt her arm?" she asked.

"Yes," he nodded, "Malcolm was mad when he found out we took his machine because it's very important to him. To get it back, he took something that's very important to us."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. He said that he would give you back to us if we gave his machine back to him, but he lied. He let you go, but he didn't want your mom or me trying to stop him anymore. That's why she got hurt."

"Uncle Malcolm tried to kill Mommy?"

"Yes," he nodded, "But he didn't, and Barry, Caitlin, and Harry are taking care of her and making sure she gets better.

"Okay," Avery nodded.

"Do you understand now?" he asked. She nodded again, but didn't move to get off his lap.

He figured she was processing everything that he'd told her, so he sat and waited. After a while, Cisco came out of the med room. He opened the door just enough for him to fit through and closed it just as quickly.

"We think she'll be okay," he said and Leonard felt his heart finally returning to a normal pace, "They stabilized her and stopped the bleeding. Now they're just getting the bullet out and then they'll be done."

Leonard nodded. He lifted Avery up to place her on the next chair and then got to his feet.

"Cisco, do you mind watching her for a little while," he gestured to Avery.

"Where are you going?" Cisco and Avery asked at the same time.

"I just have something to take care of," he said, addressing Avery, "I'll be back soon."

* * *

Leonard wasn't exactly sure where he was going. The person he was looking for never stayed in one place for too long, but he had his guesses.

As it turns out, his third guess — a bar in central City called Saints and Sinners — was right. He was grateful for that; his next guess would have taken him to Star City.

The man he was looking for was leaning against the wall next to an old-fashioned jukebox. He was chatting up a girl with messy hair, a leather jacket, and an age at least half of his.

Leonard strode across the bar and grabbed him by the arm, pulling him out the back entrance into a musty alleyway.

"Mick," Leonard said.

"What the hell was that?" Mick exclaimed, looking around him in confusion.

"Did you tell Merlyn I was working with Sara?" Leonard growled, his fists balled together in anger.

"What?"

"I know you're still in contact with him. Are you the one who told him Sara's working with me?"

"What, no," Mick answered, shaking his head, "Why would I do that?"

" _Somebody_ told him because he's been calling her and today he kidnapped Avery."

"Who's Avery?" Mick asked before his eyes lit up with recognition, "Oh, your daughter."

"She's not my—" he started, but then decided it wasn't the point, "Fine, yes. He found her at school and kidnapped her and wouldn't let her go until we gave him the Markov device. _He shot Sara_!"

"Shit, man," he said, "I'm sorry about all that, I really am, but I'm not the one that told him."

"Then who did?"

"Look, Snart, Merlyn's got eyes all over this city. It was prob'ly one 'a them," Mick said.

"Sara's in the hospital right now with a bullet in her stomach. She's fighting for her life. She might _die_. Avery might lose her mother. It's Merlyn's fault and I want to know who told him."

"And do what?" Mick asked, "I can tell how much you love Sara—"

"What?" Leonard interrupted, but Mick ignored him,

"— but when you find this guy, what are you gonna do? Kill him? What good is that gonna do? It's not gonna save your girl."

Leonard's shoulders slumped.

"I hope you figure this all out," Mick said, clapping him on the shoulder before heading back into the bar.

Leonard took the long way back to the parking lot, walking out of the alley and around Saints and Sinners instead of cutting through the bar. As he was approaching the car, his phone rang. He waited until he was sitting in the drivers seat before answering it.

"Cold," Cisco said, "We've got a situation down at S.T.A.R. Labs."

"What kind of situation?" Leonard asked, starting the car, "Sara?"

"No," Cisco said quickly, "She's still in surgery. She's fine. No, it's actually Avery."

"What happened? Is she okay?" he asked. With the phone sandwiched between his shoulder and his cheek, he started backing out of the parking lot.

"I dunno, man. She, like, freaked out or something like a half hour after you left, I guess because she doesn't really know where she is, or who any of us are. All I know is that she's been crying for like forty five minutes and we dunno how to get her to stop and she's asking for you."

"Tell her I'll be there in fifteen minutes," he said before hanging up the phone.

* * *

It was dark by the time he returned to the lab and pulled up to the same side entrance as earlier that day, late enough to be past Avery's bedtime.

Indeed, Avery looked dead on her feet when he arrived at the Cortex. Wally and Cisco were kneeling gingerly by her side, and Avery herself was sitting on the floor with disheveled hair and tears leaving shining tracks down her cheeks. Her clothes were rumpled and dirty from being worn all day, not to mention being in the dusty warehouse. She'd lost her shoes at some point during her tantrum and now even her socks were slipping off of her feet.

She looked up when Leonard walked in and got to her feet, stumbling in his direction before collapsing into his arms. Leonard lifted her up so her legs locked around his middle and her arms looped around his neck. She buried her face in the collar of his jacket, sobbing into the worn leather.

"Thank God," Cisco said, too grateful for not being in charge of Avery's emotional wellbeing anymore to notice how Captain Cold's demeanor was unusually warm. Wally and Cisco went into the med room, saying as they did that they'd be back out in a little while to give an update him on Sara.

Leonard left the Cortex and started walking around the winding hallways of S.T.A.R. Labs.

He had never seen Avery cry before. It was such a change from the cheerful and bubbly girl he was used to. Lisa, on the other hand, had been very fussy at this age, so he wasn't exactly unprepared to deal with an upset toddler. He remembered from years ago that one of the only things that calmed Lisa down was walks. He would take to the park or around the neighborhood, at night even a car ride would help soothe her. He figured he might as well give it a try with Avery.

He didn't say anything to her. He wasn't sure if he should; all of this was so new to him. He decided that if Avery wanted him say something, she'd ask him, and until then he resigned to a calming silence as he walked around S.T.A.R. Labs.

What was going to happen when Sara recovered? Leonard would understand if she was furious with him for endangering her daughter and causing the incredible amount of pain she was in.

He would understand if she never wanted to speak to him again. He wouldn't be happy about it, and he knew he'd miss her and Avery, but he would understand.

But what if Sara didn't recover? He knew Caitlin, Wells, and Barry were doing everything they could to save her, but what if they couldn't? Maybe he had taken too long to get to S.T.A.R. Labs. Maybe it was too late to save her.

What if she _died_?

Would he want to continued the mission to stop Merlyn from destroying the city? He knew he _should_ , but maybe he just couldn't, not without Sara.

And what about Avery? What would happen to her if her mother died? She would probably go to Dinah, but there was a chance she'd go to Star City to live with Laurel or Quentin.

Leonard felt his arms protectively tighten around Avery's shoulders at the thought of losing the little girl who had undeniably stolen his heart.

It took two full laps around the lab's main hallways before Avery's sobs had subsided to just a trickle.

Just outside the Cortex doors, Leonard set Avery down and crouched down at her level.

"You okay kid?" he asked, wiping a stray tear off her cheek with his thumb. She nodded, her lower lip trembling. Before she could start crying again, he wrapped his arms around her and let her fall against his chest. He rubbed a hand up and down her back and waited for her to pull away.

When she did, she lifted her head and said,

"I'm hungry."

Leonard hadn't thought of that. He supposed he probably should have. It had been a few hours since the incident at the warehouse and even longer since Avery had gone to school. All this meant that, unless Cisco had fed Avery, which Leonard suspected he hadn't, it had been a very long time since Avery had eaten.

"And I wanna change outta these clothes," she added, "And get my blanky."

"So you want to go home," he clarified. She nodded.

At first, he wasn't sure if he wanted to leave S.T.A.R. Labs, he didn't want to leave Sara, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized it was a good idea. They did need to eat something, and Avery needed a change of clothes. Plus, they could both use even just an hour away from the lab. Leonard's head had been swimming in possibilities of what was happening in the med room since they arrived. He could use the distraction.

So he and Avery walked back to the Cortex.

After bringing Sara to the med room, Barry had run to get her car from the warehouse so they could have Avery's carseat if they needed it.

It had paid off, because, all Leonard had to do was let Cisco know where they were going and ignore the dark bloodstains on Sara's jacket as he fished through her pockets for the keys and then they were off.

* * *

Avery was unusually quiet during the ride home, but once she was back in her apartment she seemed to be back to her bubbly self.

She immediately went to her room to change out of her old clothes, and Leonard set to making the easiest meal he could think of: grilled cheese.

"Does your mom have cookie cutter anywhere?" he asked when Avery emerged from her bedroom in a pair of pink henley pajamas.

"Are we making cookies?" she asked after pointing him towards the cupboard of baking supplies where he found a plastic bag filled with cookie cutters of all shapes and sizes. She climbed up onto a barstool to better regard Leonard's cooking.

"Nope." He fished through the bag until he found a metal butterfly. Avery leaned over the counter to watch Leonard press the cookie cutter into the middle of the grilled cheese.

"Ooh, it's a grilled cheese butterfly!" Avery exclaimed when the cutout was on her plate, "Are you gonna make yours into a shape?"

"How about you pick?" he suggested, handing her the bag. She sifted through the bag for a moment before handing him a heart shaped cookie cutter.

"Good choice," Leonard said.

"Are we gonna go back to the star building?" Avery asked as she started eating her dinner. Leonard figured she was referring to S.T.A.R. Labs.

"That depends," he answered, "You could come back with me, or I could call Lisa over to she could stay here with you for the night and I'll pick you up tomorrow morning."

Avery seemed to think it over.

"No," she said after chewing and swallowing another bite of her grilled cheese, "I wanna stay with you."

"Are you sure?" he asked, "We might be there for a long time and it might be hard for you to sleep."

"If something happens to Mommy I want to be there," she said seriously.

He couldn't argue with that.

"Okay."

Leonard and Avery hung around the apartment for another few hours, letting the little girl release some of her pent-up energy from the long day she'd had. She finished eating, and then they played a couple games of go-fish (where she repeatedly asked him to prove he didn't have the card she wanted by showing her his whole hand). She showed him a ballet routine, and he read her a few stories and by then, she finally seemed tired, her movements subdued and her eyelids drooping.

Leonard decided it was time to go back to S.T.A.R. Labs.

Avery ran into her room to get her blanket - a soft square of pink fabric with satin edges and a stuffed bunny sewn into the center — and then they were off.

Unbeknownst to Leonard, Avery had fallen asleep on the ride from her apartment to the lab, something he only realized when they pulled up to the building. He opened the back door to see Avery with her thumb in her mouth and her blanket in her closed fist. Her cheek was pressed up against the side of the carseat and her eyes were closed.

He knew he had to somehow get her into the lab — after all, he certainly couldn't leave her in the car by herself, but he also knew that waking her up probably wasn't the solution either — a grumpy four-year-old was the last thing he needed right now.

He settled on unbuckling her from her carseat and gingerly lifting her up into his arms. Her legs dangled towards the ground and her arms were draped haphazardly on either side of his neck. Her chin was over his shoulder and her wild curls brushed against his face, tickling his nose.

He made his way back to the Cortex, where Cisco was sitting at the wide desk.

"How's Sara?" he asked, ignoring the perplexed look on Cisco's face when he turned in his swivel chair to see Captain Cold carrying the sleeping girl.

"Good I think," he said, "They're still in surgery. It might be a while."

Leonard sat in one of the chairs against the wall. He let his legs stretch out, bracing Avery from sliding off of him. She was splayed out on his chest, her breaths long and even.

Leonard didn't sleep, fearful of what could await him when he woke up.

Hours later, a few minutes before midnight, Barry, Caitlin, and Harrison emerged from the med room.

They looked exhausted.

Caitlin wiped sweaty hair out of her face, Harrison had spots of blood across his shirt, Barry collapsed in the rolling office chair with a deep sigh.

"We got the bullet out," Caitlin told him reassuringly, "She'll be fine."

Leonard nodded. He almost let himself drift off, his chin resting on top of Avery's head, but not even fifteen minutes later, he was jolted into consciousness by a cacophony of beeping coming from the med room. Caitlin and Wells jumped to their feet and roused Barry, who'd fallen asleep in his chair, as they went to Sara.

If Leonard had been in there with them, he would have known that when they'd removed the bullet from Sara's abdomen, they'd ruptured a blood vessel, causing profuse internal bleeding.

But he wasn't there. He could only catch a few words through the closed door of the med room, and those words didn't reassure him that Sara would be okay.

"Hemorrhage."

"Blood loss."

"No pulse."

"Flatlining."

He heard the sounds of them starting up the defibrillator. He heard them administering waves of shocks to restart her heart. All he did was sit very still, trying to block out the sounds from the med room but knowing he would _never_ be able to.

Leonard didn't know how he'd be reacting to all this if Avery hadn't been with him.

Perhaps he'd be angry, pacing the Cortex and demanding miraculous solutions that didn't yet exist.

More likely, he would have succumbed to the empty darkness he was feeling. He might have ignored Mick's advice to let go of what Malcolm did and instead focus on Sara. He might have tracked the man down and made him regret ever going near Sara and Avery.

But he didn't do either of those things.

As much as it hurt every part of Leonard's being to hear Sara suffering, he'd rather listen for the rest of his life than let Avery wake up and know the amount of pain her mother was in.

He held Avery closer to him, finding an unlikely anchor in the little girl. He rested his forehead on top of her head, his face hidden in her hair.

He squeezed his eyes shut, trying his hardest to not see behind his eyes what must be happening in the med room.

It took another two hours for Caitlin, Barry, and Wells to stabilize Sara, but one blood transfusion and a hell of a lot of stitches later, they finally traipsed out of the room.

They all looked dead on their feet. Barry immediately collapsed in a chair and closed his eyes, his elbow balanced on the armrest and his chin in his hand. Cisco, although not involved in the surgery, had been assisting, doing supply runs whenever Caitlin need them, and around fifteen minutes ago had fallen asleep at the desk, his head in his hands. Even Caitlin, who was usually able to maintain her composure during even the toughest of situations, was showing signs of the strain caused by what had been nearly twelve hours of surgery.

"She's going to be okay," she told Leonard, managing a reassuring smile, "This time for real."

"She's pretty loaded with sedatives," Wells said, "She probably won't wake up until tomorrow morning." He turned to Caitlin, "I'm gonna head out. Give me a call if something happens."

Harrison pulled on his coat, nodded in their direction, and left the Cortex.

"Glad to see Avery's sleeping," Caitlin said, "She's had a long and eventful day for a four-year-old."

Leonard nodded vaguely, staring into space. Caitlin followed his eyes to the med room door, as if he was waiting for Sara to walk through it and tell him she was okay.

"Go see her," she said gently, tipping her head towards where Sara was sleeping, "I can watch Avery for a little while. Don't worry, I won't pass out like the boys."

Leonard nodded and then stood, still holding Avery. He set her down on a black leather couch, where she curled into her side, her blanky still in her hand.

He quietly opened the door into the med room and stepped inside.

The curtains had been moved away from the bed, along with most of the surgical equipment. The only things left by the bed were an IV drip and a heart monitor, both with lines leading to Sara.

Sara was lying asleep in the hospital bed. Her head was tipped to the side, and her long hair was strewn across the pillow. The heart monitor by her side was beeping rhythmically.

There was a chair in the corner of the room and Leonard pulled it closer to the hospital bed. He sat in the chair, not really sure what to do.

Just being near Sara, seeing her breathing, hearing the heart monitor prove to him that Sara was truly alive, lifted a tension that Leonard didn't know he'd had.

He wasn't sure if he of all people should be the one by her bedside. He was, after all, the reason she was here. He was the reason she had nearly died, orphaning her daughter and leaving behind so many people who cared about her.

But here he was.

Acting on impulse, he took her hand that was lying limply by her side, engulfing it in his own. He pressed his lips to her knuckles, not releasing her hand when he pulled away.

He only let go when he felt someone touch his shoulder. He looked up to see Caitlin standing behind him.

"You should sleep," she said, "It's been a long day."

"What time is it?" he asked, only realizing now how tired he truly was. His eyes stung with exhaustion, his eyelids getting heavier with every blink.

"2:30 in the morning," Caitlin answered. He nodded and stood up, following her out of the med room. He paused at the doorway, glancing back one last time at Sara before he let the door close.

The Cortex floor was now home to several cots. While Leonard was in the med room with Sara, Caitlin had transferred Avery, Cisco, and Barry to three of the cots. The remaining two were clearly for herself and Leonard.

"Not the first time you've had late night emergencies?" Leonard asked.

"Nope," Caitlin replied, shaking her head, "And definitely won't be the last. Believe me when I say that in this business of metahumans and super-villains, Sara's injuries aren't a special case."

Her words were meant to be encouraging, and strangely, Leonard understood. Sure, a bullet to the stomach was a rarity and most likely a tragedy for most people, but they weren't most people. They had an entirely different set of standards, and within those, Sara's case was relatively normal.

"Go to sleep," Caitlin said a second time, "I'll wake you up if something happens."

He nodded again. As he made his way towards the cot, he saw that Avery's blanky had fallen to the floor. He bent down to pick it up and placed it under her arm so it would be right by her when she woke up.

He smoothed a hand over her light brown curls as he passed her bed, and he climbed into his own.

He was asleep the second his head hit the pillow, eager for the Hell of that day to be over.

* * *

 **Get ready for a wild ride of sporadic updates because I'm descending on a month or so of AP tests, the SAT/ACT, and finals. I have my AP Lang final this week (yes, spread over the entire week, yay), so I'm not sure if I'll get to writing. We'll see :)**


	10. Chapter 10

**This chapter was originally part of chapter 9, but when that chapter was clocking in at around 4500 words, I decided to split it into two. Enjoy some more Avery/Len fluff and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Avery woke up a few minutes after six-thirty. She could tell without opening her eyes that she was not in her own bed. The mattress wasn't as squishy and the blanket wasn't as soft. Her eyelids parted to see soft light coming from a computer monitor and she recognized the Cortex in S.T.A.R. Labs. Then, memories of the last day came back to her.

She remembered her Uncle Malcolm picking her up at school and bringing her to the warehouse. She remembered talking to her mom on the phone and she remembered how scared she had sounded. She remembered watching Malcolm pace back and forth until her mom showed up. She remembered hearing the gunshot and seeing her mom lying in a heap on the concrete floor, and the bleeding in the backseat of the car.

She lifted her head, looking for her blanky. She saw it lying by her hand, and quickly grabbed it, holding the stuffed bunny.

She peered around the Cortex, trying to find a familiar face. She was awake now, but knew she shouldn't walk around in a room filled with expensive science equipment by herself. At the same time, she didn't want to be on her own anymore.

She found Leonard in the cot next to her own and climbed in next to him, just like she did with her mother when she hadn't woken up yet during the weekends.

He stirred at the movement next to him, opening his eyes to a mop of light brown curls.

"Avery," he said groggily.

"Can I stay with you 'til it's time to get up?" she whispered. He nodded, remembering Sara told him once that Avery did this in the mornings, when she was awake but Sara wasn't quite yet. Sara would always wake up when Avery climbed into the bed, but she would pretend to be asleep for a little longer than she would have otherwise, relishing in the time when her daughter was four and still wanted to cuddle with her in the mornings.

Avery crawled up so she was lying on his chest. He wrapped one arm around her back, bracing her from sliding off of him. She rested the side of her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. Leonard started absently tracing circles on her back with his hand as he glanced towards the clock.

It read a few minutes past eight-thirty in the morning; Leonard had gotten a little more than six hours hours of sleep. He looked towards the med room where he could see Sara still sleeping off the anesthesia in the hospital bed.

He hadn't expected she'd be awake, but he'd had his hopes. He'd just have to keep waiting.

Avery laid with him for a few minutes before she got restless. She sat up and quietly played with her blanky before Leonard decided that he too should get up.

He quietly led Avery out of the Cortex, where Caitlin, Cisco, and Barry were still asleep, and drove with her back to the apartment building.

Leonard could tell this whole situation was weighing on her. Even with Leonard's explanation, she didn't really understand what had happened the day before. She didn't know why it had involved her or why it had ended with her mom getting hurt.

Leonard could sense her frustration, which was why he was taking her back to her apartment not even twelve hours after they last left. She needed the familiarity.

Lisa let herself into Sara's apartment a few minutes after they arrived. She hugged Avery tightly and then gave one to her brother as well.

"What's this for?" he asked.

"You just looked like you needed a hug," she shrugged.

Leonard left Avery with Lisa so he could go to his apartment for a shower and a change of clothes. When he returned, Avery was sitting cross-legged on the countertop, watching Lisa flip pancakes over the stove.

"So how's Sara doing?" Lisa asked him as he sat on a barstool at the counter.

"It was a long night," he answered, shaking his head, "She flatlined a few times before they stabilized her. She's just sleeping off the anesthesia now."

"That's good," she nodded. She tipped her head towards Avery, "How's she doing?"

"I don't know," he replied, "How're you doing, Avery?"

"Good," she shrugged, "Hungry."

"Awesome," Lisa replied, "Because you're about to taste the best pancakes you've ever had!"

"They're also the only thing she can cook well," Leonard pointed out, making Avery giggle and Lisa roll her eyes.

He lifted Avery off the counter and sat her in her chair at the dining table. Lisa placed a stack of pancakes in the center of the table and helped Avery serve herself.

"So you're gonna head back to S.T.A.R. Labs after this?" Lisa asked once they were all eating.

Leonard nodded.

"I want to get some stuff to keep Ave busy at the lab, and a change of clothes for Sara when she wakes up. I assume she'd appreciate not wearing ones covered in day-old blood."

"Are you dating my mommy?" Avery piped up. Her question shocked Leonard into silence as Lisa choked on the sip of orange juice she'd just taken.

"Uhh," he stammered.

"It's a valid question," Lisa said when she'd finished coughing.

"No," he got out, "No, I'm not."

"Do you want to date my mom?" Avery asked, her wide eyes full of innocence. He took a few moments to answer.

"I want your mom to date someone who makes her happy," he finally answered.

"Okay," she nodded, apparently satisfied with his answer. Lisa, on the other hand, was not, as evidenced by the way she was rolling her eyes so hard she was practically looking into the back of her head.

Avery then started telling them all about her upcoming ballet recital.

Leonard wasn't really listening to her. He was still thinking about what Avery had asked him.

He was still thinking about how he'd wanted to say yes.

It had been the first thought that had entered his mind. He hadn't said it, obviously, but it was still weighing on him.

 _Did_ he want to date Sara?

Yes, he decided, and he'd felt that for a long time.

But did she feel the same way? He would get it if she didn't. He expected it, even. So little had gone right in his life for something like that to happen to him. Besides, what would she see in him anyway?

Sara was young, gorgeous, fiercely loyal to those she cared about,

Leonard, on the other hand, was a criminal who'd operated to take over the world for a while before even that didn't pan out property.

To think that Sara would be interested in him was insane, and Leonard was frustrated with himself for letting his train of thought go that far, for even thinking of it as if it was possible.

After they finished eating, Lisa went into Sara's room to put together a bag with a change of clothes and other things Sara might need when she woke up.

Leonard went to do the same thing for Avery.

He wasn't sure when Sara was going to wake up, but he did know that when she did, she wasn't going to go straight home. She still wasn't going to be strong enough yet to leave the lab.

What's more, Leonard knew Sara well enough to know that she wasn't going to let her injury stop their mission to defeat Merlyn. The second she woke up she was going to want to get back to planning.

After all, Merlyn may have been injured by the blast from Leonard's cold gun, but he'd be back.

In her bedroom, Avery dumped the contents of her school backpack onto the floor of her bedroom and started filling it with things she thought she might need. Leonard sat on the bed and suggested a toy or two, but generally just supervised.

She didn't need any clothes — after breakfast she'd changed out of her pajamas into a pair of denim shorts and a blue and peach t-shirt — but Leonard tucked another pair of pajamas into the bottom of the backpack just in case. In followed a coloring book and crayons, a deck of kids playing cards, several paperback picture books, and her ballet shoes. A few other small plastic toys were added, and Avery's blanky spent a moment in the bag before she snatched it back out, deciding it would be safer with her.

After the bag was zipped up and on Avery's shoulders, they walked down the hallway to find Lisa.

Leonard had never been in Sara's room before. The walls were a deep red color that matched the shade of the bedspread. The furniture was made of dark timber and in one corner was a red and chocolate brown armchair.

This was where Lisa was sitting, putting together a bag of clothes and toiletries for Sara.

"What do you think, Avery?" Lisa asked when they entered the room, "Grey and purple stripes or navy and white stars for pajama pants?"

"Stars," Avery replied confidently.

Lisa put the start patterned cotton pants in a sports backpack, zipped it up, and stood to hand it to Leonard. She pulled him into another hug.

"Hang in there," she told him when she pulled away, "She's gonna be fine."

She crouched down to scoop up Avery.

"Don't worry too much about your mommy, okay?" she told her, "She's so strong and so brave. She's going to be okay."

Avery nodded.

"And if you want to come home, just tell Lenny to call me and I'll come pick you up."

"Okay," Avery nodded again as Lisa set her back on the floor.

They left Sara's apartment, closing and locking the door behind them.

"Let me know when Sara wakes up," Lisa said to her brother before she turned and entered her own apartment.

Leonard and Avery had just started walking towards the stairwell when Avery stopped in her tracks.

"Wait!" she exclaimed, "We have to do the daily bubble!"

"Really?" Leonard asked warily, "You can't just skip one day?"

"No, 'cause then it's not a _daily_ bubble anymore," Avery said, "We _have_ to go back."

Leonard debated calling Lisa back. He knew she would be far more comfortable with Avery's request than he was, but for some reason, he felt oddly compelled to do it himself.

He opened the door to Sara's apartment again and led Avery back inside.

She skipped onto the balcony, pausing at the door to make sure Leonard was still behind her.

On the balcony was the same wand and tupperware container filled with soapy liquid that had been there the day Leonard had first met Avery and Sara.

Avery took the lid off the container and held out the bubble wand to Leonard. He gingerly took it from her, letting the pink plastic roll over in his hands. He carefully soaked the wand in the bubble liquid, making sure it was completely submerged before moving it.

He didn't know why he felt so nervous about this, maybe because he knew how much this seemingly mundane habit meant to Avery. He didn't want to let her down.

"Don't be too upset if the bubble doesn't last very long," he said, trying to not set her up for disappointment, "I've never done this before."

"It's okay," Avery replied with as much sincerity as she could muster.

Leonard nodded and lifted the bubble wand out of the tupperware. It dripped soapy water into the plastic container.

He slowly dragged the wand through the air and watched the beachball sized bubble form. It bounced through the air, moving with the ebb and flow of the wind.

"One…two…" Avery started reciting, "three…four…five… _count, Lenny_ …six…"

"Seven…" he joined, "eight…nine…"

Just as Avery started to say ten, the bubble was blown to the side by a gust of wind and popped, little droplets of water hanging suspended in midair for a moment before plummeting to the road below.

"Nine!" Avery exclaimed, doing a happy little dance, "That's so many seconds!"

"Really?" he asked.

"Yeah! It's so close to our record," she replied, "I can't wait to tell Mommy!"

She picked up her backpack and bounced back out of the apartment.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go!" she gestured wildly for Leonard to follow her.

"Alright," he shook his head in exasperation, "Relax, I'm right behind you."

* * *

When they arrived at S.T.A.R. Labs, Caitlin informed them that Sara would be waking up any minute. Leonard took Avery into the med room to see her mom and wait for her to wake up, but she grew restless very quickly, so he sent her back into the Cortex to play with Barry and Jesse.

That left Leonard alone in the med room with Sara.

Every minute that went by felt like years. Hours passed between each beep of the heart monitor, between each rise and fall of her chest, counting down the days until she woke up.

* * *

Sara woke to an overall numb sensation in her entire body. She remembered the events of the day before and groaned, recalling the warehouse and the Markov device and Merlyn and the bullet he'd shot into her side.

"Morning sunshine," a familiar voice nearby said.

She turned her head towards the sound and opened her eyes to see Leonard sitting beside her bed, his clasped hands on the mattress.

"Oh how the tables have turned," he continued. Sara rolled her eyes, pushing herself up to a seated position in the hospital bed. He was mocking what she had said to him when he'd woken up in the back of her police car. That moment seemed so long ago now.

"How long was I out?" she asked, pushing her hair out of her eyes.

"Almost twenty hours," he replied.

"Who's been watching Avery?"

"I have."

"I'll bet that's been fun," Sara tried to smirk but only managed a small smile, "Is she okay?"

"Yeah, I think so," he answered, "She had a rough couple of hours last night, but for the most part she's been holding up pretty well."

"What's she doing now?"

"I think Barry and Jesse are teaching her how to play ping pong," he said, glancing behind him into the Cortex. Through the glass door, Sara could just see Avery. She was standing on a wooden box to reach the surface of the ping pong table and Jesse was standing behind her, holding the paddle with Avery and showing her how to swing and hit the ball Barry was serving.

"Do you want to see her?"

She nodded, and Leonard moved to stand up.

"Wait," she stopped him, "I don't look like I almost just died, right? I don't want to freak her out."

"You look beautiful," he said softly, "You always look beautiful."

She smiled at him.

He stood up and went back to the Cortex.

"You wanna come see your mom?" he asked Avery.

"Yeah!" she exclaimed, dropping her ping pong paddle and following him back into the med room, "Mommy!"

She bounded across the room to the hospital bed.

"Hi Avie," Sara smiled. Leonard lifted Avery up and gently placed her next to her mother. Sara stretched her arms around her, kissing the top of her head, "I missed you."

"I missed you too, Mommy," Avery replied.

"Did Lenny take good care of you?"

"Uh-huh," she nodded, "Last night he made me a grilled cheese shaped like a butterfly."

"Wow, that's awesome."

"And guess what!"

"What?"

"Lenny and I did the daily bubble today and we got _nine whole seconds_!"

"That's so close to eleven!" Sara said. Avery nodded.

She talked for a little while, updating her mom about the events of the last day. Soon, she went quiet and then, curled up beside her mom with her head on her shoulder, she was asleep.

"Thank you for taking care of her," Sara said gratefully, her hand falling to rest on his. Leonard ignored the tingle he felt at her touch, simultaneously hoping she did and didn't feel it too, "I mean it. She really trusts you. I'm sure you made this whole thing a lot easier for her.

"Don't worry about it," he shook his head.

"So," she said. Her voice was quieter than usual to make sure Avery stayed asleep, "Merlyn got away."

"As did the Markov device," Leonard finished.

"We were _so_ close."

"I know," he agreed, "but on the plus side, he can't hide his plan anymore."

"Why not?"

"The next phase of the plan is to start the Markov device."

"So?" Sara asked, "Why can't he hide that?"

"He won't want to," he replied, "Merlyn doesn't actually want to kill anyone. You can't take over a city with no citizens because they're all dead. He'll tell people right before it goes off."

The glass door opened and Cisco, Caitlin, and Barry filed in.

"I heard Markov device," Cisco said, "What're we talking about?"

"Eavesdropping on our conversation, were we, Ramon?" Leonard drawled.

"No," he replied as Caitlin and Barry both said, "Yes."

"So," Cisco ignored them and fell into another chair, "What's the plan?"

"I'm still not sure why Merlyn's doing all of this anonymously," Caitlin said, "Wouldn't a destroyed city come with a name attached?"

"Not if the destroyed city is just the set up for a bigger plan," Leonard answered.

"What do you mean?" Barry asked.

"Merlyn's a businessman," he reminded them, "He's always thinking about expanding his company's empire. He thinks that sweeping in to save a destroyed city will win the support of the citizens."

"How long do you think we have?" Caitlin asked.

"A few weeks, maybe," he replied, "He's gonna lay low for a little bit, take some time to recover. He got injured in the warehouse, no thanks to Sara, here."

"Hey, I was dying!" Sara said defensively, "What d'you expect?"

"I guess I just figured my partner would have a little more commitment to the mission when we're saving an entire city," Leonard said mockingly.

"Oh, I'm _so sorry_ I didn't meet your expectations," Sara joked, rolling her eyes.

"So a few weeks gives us plenty of time to figure out how to stop Merlyn," Barry interjected, trying to pull them back onto a productive path, "I think our best bet is shutting down the Markov device right before it goes off."

"Yes, because Merlyn will be on his way back to Star City, if not already there, so no one will be able to turn it back on again," Caitlin said, pacing around the med room, "It'll have to be timed perfectly, and any errors could be fatal, but I'd say it's definitely possible."

"That sounds like a vote of confidence if I've ever heard one," Leonard said.

"I don't think you _have_ ever heard one," Sara teased.

"Cheap shot," he replied, matching her smirk.

* * *

Under Caitlin's careful supervision, Sara only needed to stay at S.T.A.R. Labs for a few days. It was good she got to go home when she did because Sara was starting to get restless. Most of their days were spent planning the mission to stop Merlyn, but when they weren't doing that, there was very little for Sara to do from the confines of the hospital bed.

Leonard had found a deck of cards and had taken to dealing it out whenever Sara seemed to be getting stir-crazy. Gin was their game of choice, and Leonard was getting increasingly frustrated when the score started tipping in Sara's favor. They'd played fifteen games now, and Sara had won nine of them.

Leonard never lost a game of cards, at least, not until Sara came along.

He'd also been able to hone his go-fish skills with all the time he was spending with Avery.

Now that she knew her mom was okay, Avery was spending most of her days at her apartment, with Joe West and Lisa taking turns watching her.

Joe took the morning shift, getting her ready for school and dropping her off on his way to the police precinct.

Lisa took care of her during the nighttime, staying in Sara's apartment while Avery slept.

Every afternoon, Leonard picked Avery up from preschool and took her to S.T.A.R. Labs to visit her mom.

At first, the pickups were a source of anxiety for him, but now he was enjoying them.

The way her eyes lit up when she saw him waiting outside the school, the way her backpack flew behind her as she ran towards him, the way she launched herself into his arms, all made him feel special and important.

It was undeniable that the little girl had become very important to him, and so it seemed had her mother.

* * *

Three days after she had arrived, Sara was up and walking and ready to leave S.T.A.R. Labs.

"Thank you so much for saving my life," she said, hugging Caitlin, "and for all the help on with the mission."

"I'm just glad you're okay," Caitlin smiled.

"Yeah, we all are," Barry added, "We'll talk more about stopping Merlyn after you've had time to settle in at home."

Sara nodded, gave one last round of hugs and then she headed out of the Cortex.

"Stay out of trouble, Snart," Barry said to Leonard. He said nothing in response, but smirked and turned to follow Sara down the hallways of S.T.A.R. Labs.

Barry watched him go with a sneaking suspicion that for the first time, he actually would.

* * *

The two weeks between Sara's return and the start of Merlyn's plan went by quickly.

Sara spent most of the time recovering from her injury. She may have been able to walk around, but she also knew that this wasn't the time to push it, especially when it came to stomach injuries.

Leonard had become her self-appointed guard during her recovery. Sara knew that he felt a little guilty about what had happened in the warehouse and wanted to make up for it.

Lisa had picked up on it too.

She had once asked him why he was doing all of this, why he was putting so much effort into helping Sara.

"Because it's my fault she almost died," he had answered.

"You know that's not true," Lisa responded, "Merlyn's the one who shot her, not you."

"It _is_ my fault," he insisted, "Merlyn wouldn't've shot her if she hadn't been working against him, and she wouldn't've been working against him if I didn't agree to let her work with me."

"That was _her_ decision," Lisa said sternly, "Sara's smart, she knew what she was getting into. She knew full well what could happen and she worked with you anyway. She does not blame you for what happened."

Leonard said nothing.

"But," Lisa continued, "I figure you'll just ignore me anyway."

And ignore her he did.

Leonard was spending so much time around the Lance's apartment that Sara joked that if his own apartment wasn't right across the hall, he'd be living with her.

Leonard rolled his eyes dismissively whenever she said this but she wasn't wrong.

He was there in the morning to help make breakfast — usually with Avery's assistance — and get Avery ready for school.

Leonard and Sara would drop Avery off at school and then continue to S.T.A.R. Labs to plan their mission to defeat Merlyn (towards the end of Sara's recovery, she was able to drive herself, but she still went with Leonard to the lab simply because why should they take two cars if they were both going to the same place).

Leonard enjoyed the car rides with Sara. He enjoyed the banter, especially when it erred on the side of flirtation.

When they were done at the lab, they picked Avery up from the preschool and went back to the apartment building to make dinner.

Leonard knew that the late evening — just after Avery was put to bed — was the worst for Sara. Her pain meds had fully worn off but it wasn't time to take more yet, and she didn't have the added distraction of working on the mission with the team at S.T.A.R. Labs.

He knew she tried to contain the amount of pain she was in for Avery's sake, but after she went to bed, Sara didn't have to anymore.

She would wince with every movement, and usually ended up collapsed on the couch, her arms crossed over her stomach. She would squeeze her eyes shut, but the occasional tear would slip between her closed eyelids and trickle down her cheek.

Once night, a few days after she had returned home from S.T.A.R. Labs, it had been so bad that she was doubled over on the couch, her face buried in the cushions.

"It's okay," Leonard said as he sat beside her, "Only ten minutes until you take your painkillers. You can do anything for ten minutes."

Sara turned and collapsed against him, her forehead against his chest and her hands gripping fistfuls of his shirt. She was shaking, though from tears or pain or some other reason, Leonard didn't know.

He had no choice but to wrap his arms around her shoulders (although if he had been given the choice, he probably still wouldn't have objected).

He stayed with her until the clock on the TV box read nine o'clock. He stood up and went to the kitchen while Sara slowly sat up. He returned moments later with her painkillers and a glass of cold water.

"Thanks," she said after taking the meds.

What immediately followed the pain meds was a time that Leonard particularly enjoyed.

The meds that Sara took had a tendency to make her a little loopy the first twenty minutes after they kicked in. She found everything funny, from the mundane to the extreme, and it was the first and only time he'd ever heard her giggle.

"Lenny — I think it's so cute how Avie calls you Lenny" she giggled and then became more serious, "You know you're like my best friend, right? Right Len?"

"Sure," he responded.

"No, really," she insisted, "I've never been friends with someone like I've been friends with you. I mean we're fuckin' saving the world together. I never did anything like that with my best friend in high school."

"I would hope not," Leonard commented. Sara laughed, even though it wasn't particularly funny.

"Seriously, it's just so _easy_ to be with you. I've told you things I've never told anyone before. Like Avie's dad. I've never talked about her dad, not even with Laurel and I tell her _everything_."

She looked like she was done talking, but then she continued.

"Except I didn't tell her about Ollie Queen cheating on her with me," she corrected, "and when she found out she didn't talk to me for like a year, so maybe I shoulda talked to her about that."

Her gaze had been drifting off into nothingness, but then she focused on Leonard again.

"What was I talking about?"

"I don't—"

"Oh yeah, about how easy you are to talk to."

"I think it's time for you to call it a night," he advised her, and she nodded. They both stood from the couch.

"See you tomorrow, Len," she said as she made her way to her bedroom.

"Tomorrow, Sara."

* * *

 **Sorry for the the delayed update. I've been writing at a slightly slower pace recently to spend more time studying for a shitload of exams. I expect the same thing will happen for the next chapter, so I'll see you in a few weeks :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**We had a nice week of peace in the last chapter of this story but now we're jumping back into the action. Enjoy!**

* * *

Two weeks after Sara returned from S.T.A.R. Labs, she was nearly fully recovered from the bullet wound to the stomach she'd received from Malcolm Merlyn. She was off of the pain medication and Leonard was spending less time at her apartment — Avery was confused about why he wasn't there to make breakfast with her anymore.

The day Merlyn's plan went into action was a Friday. Avery didn't have preschool on Fridays, and Sara wasn't back at work yet, so she was enjoying spending time with her daughter.

Sara was sitting on the couch with a book and Avery curled by her side. She was having a quick snack before dinner and watching a Disney cartoon while she ate. Sara had long since tuned out the TV show — she was pretty sure Avery had seen this episode at least four or five times already, not that she remembered.

" _Hello Central City_."

Sara jumped, startled by the gravelly voice that had interrupted a princess song about kindness and love.

"Avery, go to your room," Sara demanded. Avery's eyes furrowed in confusion.

"What about my show?" she asked.

"It's a commercial," she said. She lifted Avery up off the couch and stood her on the floor, nudging her towards her bedroom. Avery shrugged and obediently left the living room.

Sara turned her attention back to the TV to see not an animated princess in a red dress, but a dark, dimly lit room. The video was obviously being filmed with a phone, and not a good one, because the quality was grainy and the man, his face covered by a black mask and hood, was very close to the camera.

"I apologize for interrupting your scheduled programming, but I figured you'd appreciate a spoiler about what comes next," the man said. The electronic sound to the voice along with the manner of speech confirmed Sara's suspicions. This was Malcolm Merlyn hidden behind a mask and a voice modulator, "In just over two hours, your city is going to be subject to the wrath of what I like to call a Markov device. What's a Markov device, you might ask? It is a machine that can trigger an earthquake so powerful it will level your entire city. You have two hours to get your affairs in order before your entire city is brought to the ground."

The screen went black and then the Disney show started playing again as if nothing had interrupted it. Sara stood from the couch and opened her apartment door to see that Leonard was about to start knocking on it.

"Oh," she stepped back in surprise.

"You heard Merlyn?" he asked.

She nodded.

"We have two hours," she said.

"We have two hours," Leonard repeated.

The clock read barely past five o'clock, so they had until seven to figure out how to defeat Merlyn and the Markov device.

"We should get to the lab," Sara said, "Let me just grab Avery."

She turned and went into her daughter's room.

Avery was sitting on the floor playing with her dollhouse.

"We've gotta go, Avie," Sara said.

"But what about dinner" she asked.

"We'll get dinner later, but now we gotta go to S.T.A.R. Labs."

"Can I play with Barry and Jesse?" Avery asked, resting her bunny blanket on the floor as she got to her feet.

"I dunno about _play_ ," Sara replied, "We're gonna be working, but you'll definitely see them."

Avery jumped giddily towards the door.

"Don't forget bunny," Sara reminded her. Avery doubled back and picked up her blanket. As they left the room, she grabbed her mother's hand, but she let go just as quickly when they entered the living room and she saw Leonard standing by the door.

"Lenny!" she cried, jumping into his arms.

"Hey kiddo." Leonard lifted her up.

"Are you coming with us to the star building?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied.

"Speaking of the _star building_ ," Sara said, "We should go."

"Just give me a minute to get my stuff and then I'll be ready," Leonard replied, setting Avery on the ground. He left the apartment for his own, and Sara busied herself with getting ready for what she, Leonard, and the team at S.T.A.R. Labs were about to do. If the next few hours went perfectly, the city would be safe, nobody would get hurt, and Merlyn would be somewhere he couldn't even plan to harm anyone anymore. If the plan didn't go as well as they hoped, which Sara suspected it would, things could end with a city in shambles.

They'd just have to see.

Sara quickly changed into a pair of jeans, a grey t-shirt, and her leather jacket. She helped Avery into her black high tops and a blue zip-up hoodie and then went with her into the hallway (and then a brief trip back inside when Avery frantically realized she'd once again forgotten her blanky).

Leonard soon joined them, his blue parka and cold gun in hand.

Avery's eyes fell on the weapon he was holding.

"What tha—"

" _Don't ask_ ," Sara warned.

"Okay," she shrugged.

They all loaded into the car and headed for S.T.A.R. Labs. Sara had expected the streets to be filled with panicked civilians, the roads packed with cars trying to make their escape from the city, but there was nothing. The only cars on the street was the usual Friday night commuters, people trying to get home to eat dinner with their families.

"I guess nobody believed Merlyn," Sara commented.

"This city's seen it all," Leonard responded, "We don't scare easy anymore."

Both Sara and Leonard preferred it this way anyway. Figuring out how to stop Merlyn would be much easier without fighting through throngs of panicked Central City civilians.

They made it to S.T.A.R. Labs in just under ten minutes, and went inside to see the Flash and his team gathered in the Cortex.

"You're here," Barry exclaimed when they walked in.

"I see you got Merlyn's message," Leonard said. Barry nodded.

"Caitlin, Cisco, and Harry are trying to track the Markov device, "He said."

"Trying is the operative word," Caitlin said, raising her head from the computer she was bent over.

"It's not still in the warehouse?" Sara asked.

"I wish," Caitlin replied, "No, that's too obvious. He'll have it somewhere he knows will be hard to find."

"We think," Wells added, "that it'll be underground because, as we know, earthquakes happen in the earth, but we don't have time to check every basement in Central City."

"Did you check the subway system?" Sara asked.

"First place we thought of," he answered, "But they're all running as normal. The Markov device would be in pieces if it was down there."

"It'll give off a heat signature when it's activated," Cisco said, "but by then it'll be too late."

The scientists continued talking about science things that Sara truthfully didn't understand. As they did, Avery pulled on her mother's sleeve.

"Mommy," she said when she'd gotten her attention, "I'm hungry."

Sara glanced at the clock and saw that it was around Avery's dinnertime.

"Avery," Leonard said, "Do you want to come with me to Big Belly Burger to pick up dinner for everyone?"

"Yeah!" she replied. She hopped out of her chair.

"Ave, leave your bunny here," Sara said, predicting the worst and wanting to prevent it happening before it did.

"But I wanna bring her!" Avery whined.

"If you forget her somewhere, I'm not gonna go track her down, so if you think you won't lose her, you can take that chance."

Avery pouted for a moment or two, but eventually relinquished her hold on the bunny. She took Leonard's hand and they left the Cortex.

About ten minutes later, Iris and Joe walked in.

"Is it true?" Joe asked, "What was on TV, was it true?"

"Yes," Sara nodded.

"The CCPD thinks it's a prank," Joe groaned.

"Them and the rest of the city," Sara replied.

"How long do you think we have?"

"A little less than two hours," Sara estimated, "But Joe, it's Merlyn."

"What?"

"Malcolm Merlyn, he's the one doing this," she said. She filled her boss in on Merlyn's plan.

"Wow," Joe said when she'd finished, absently rubbing his cheek.

"He's on a train back to Star City right now. Tell the CCPD or the SCPD or _anyone_ who can catch him. It's the only way to make sure his plan fails."

"I'm on it," Joe said seriously. He gave his daughter a kiss on the cheek and then turned to leave the lab.

"So," Iris said warily, "This is it. This is the end of Central City."

"No, Iris," Barry said, taking her hand and leading her to the chairs, sitting down beside each other, "We're not letting that happen. We're tracking down the machine and we're gonna shut it down. I promise."

Iris nodded, looking slightly more reassured.

Sara sat and watched the team try to track down Merlyn and the Markov device. Cisco was bent over a second computer trying to track Merlyn's whereabouts. He was hacked into several different street-view security cameras, and on a map of the city spread out on the desk next to him was a thick line through the streets drawn in red permanent marker, marking the path Merlyn had taken through city, stopping at the Central City train station.

The second monitor on the desk displayed a satellite map that was following a swiftly moving red X, tracking Merlyn as he fled to Star City.

Sara was beyond frustrated that they had all this information right at their fingertips and yet it still wasn't enough to save the city.

For the first time in the duration of the mission, Sara felt completely useless.

She lacked the scientific knowledge to assist Cisco, Caitlin, and Wells, no matter how much she wanted to. Even Barry seemed to be struggling to keep himself occupied.

They were all relieved when Leonard and Avery returned with food.

"We bring sustenance," he announced, dropping the white bags onto the desk.

"Woah, watch the grease near the computers, Cold," Cisco said accusingly.

"Ignore him," Caitlin said, rolling her eyes at her friend.

"I don't need to be told that," Leonard replied.

"Thanks for getting dinner, Len," Sara said gratefully, "Was Avery good?"

"She always is," he replied, "How long do we have now?"

"A little more than an hour and a half," Barry responded, "I wish I could say we made some headway while you were out, but besides Sara letting the cops know that Merlyn's behind all this, we're still at square one."

"Why am I not surprised Sara's the only one getting anything done around here?" Leonard said.

"Hey," Caitlin said, and now Leonard was the one on the receiving end of her glare, "You're lucky we're helping you out at all. Be honest, you'd be nowhere near where you are right now without us."

Leonard rolled his eyes and said nothing, a telltale sign that she was right and he knew it.

The next few minutes were relatively quiet as they all ate. When they were done, Sara took Avery to Barry's track to run her newfound energy out. She stood on the lower level and leaned against a pillar as Avery ran around and around the circular track. Leonard walked in a few minutes later.

"I couldn't stand being around the nerd team anymore," he drawled. Sara rolled her eyes at his sarcastic tone.

"Lay off them," she said, "Caitlin's right, they're doing us a huge favor. It wouldn't kill you to be a little grateful."

"I beg to differ."

"Lenny," Avery shouted from above them, "Look how fast I can run!"

They watched as Avery tore around the track.

"You're almost as fast as the Flash," Leonard said when Avery was back at her starting point a couple minutes later.

"Keep going," Sara encouraged her.

"When are you going to stop her?" Leonard asked, his voice at a lower volume.

"When she falls asleep."

* * *

Several minutes later, they were all back in the Cortex. Avery was lying in her mother's arms, not quite asleep, but almost.

The team continued to test out theories, but they were all eventually debunked.

Finally, nearly an hour after Merlyn's announcement, they made a breakthrough.

"Electromagnetic waves!" Cisco exclaimed, sitting straight up in his chair.

"What?" Caitlin replied, turning in her chair to face him.

"Look, Merlyn's plan is to generate an earthquake that will spread across the city, right?"

"Right," Caitlin and Wells repeated.

"How's he gonna do that? With electromagnetic waves that will trigger the shift in tectonic plates," he answered his own question.

"Yes!" Caitlin exclaimed, realization dawning across her face, "And electromagnetic waves are strong enough that they'll give off a magnetic signature even when the Markov device is off!"

"We can use the tracking system we made for Blackout," Cisco added. Caitlin nodded and turned back to her monitor. One minute of frantic typing later, the tracker was pulled up on the screen.

"It's picking something up!" she said, "The service road in the highway tunnels."

"Let's go," Barry said to Leonard and Sara.

Sara passed Avery over to Jesse. She shifted and opened her eyes.

"Mommy?" she said in confusion, "Where're you going?"

"I just have to go take care of something, honey," she reassured her, "I'll be back soon, I promise."

Sara kissed Avery's forehead and then followed Barry and Oliver out of the Cortex.

* * *

They drove through the highway tunnels until they found the service tunnel Caitlin directed them to. The whole ride there, Barry's knee was bouncing up and down. It was clear he was itching to run, to take care of all of this.

"Relax, Allen," Leonard said, "You'll have your chance to save everyone."

The service tunnel was empty, blocked off to the other drivers, and very dark. The only source of light was a single flickering fluorescent bulb every ten or twenty feet.

Leonard pulled the car through a gap in the barrier and shifted the car into park.

They stepped out of the car and Barry turned to look at the traffic whizzing by with a nervous expression on his face.

"What?" Sara asked tentatively.

"If the plan goes wrong, this tunnel will cave in."

"Yeah I know, it sucks. We gotta go," Sara said, gesturing towards the tunnel.

"Everybody in here's gonna get killed," he continued.

"No," Leonard said, catching the look Sara was shooting him, "No that's not gonna happen because we're going to shut the Markov device down, but we have to go _right now_."

But Barry was already gone.

And then, in a flash, he was back.

"I'm just stopping traffic in and out of the tunnels," Barry said as Sara groaned, "I just gotta get all the cars out."

He was gone again.

"Not even two minutes and we're already off plan," Leonard commented.

"We better get this over with," Sara replied.

The Markov device was a few thousand feet away from the main tunnel, in the center of four intersecting underpasses. As they approached the machine, Sara had a very bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Six guards jumped out of the other tunnels, all in an assortment of black leather. As one, they launched towards them. They had no weapons, but were trained in hand-to-hand combat; definitely Merlyn's men.

Sara immediately started fighting them, her fists colliding with cheeks and noses, her feet kicking at knees. Leonard joined her, his cold gun firing ice in every direction.

"Get the Markov device!" Sara yelled at him as she ducked underneath a guard's punch.

"But—" he gestured towards the guards.

"I got this! Go shut it down!"

Leonard ran to the Markov device. He switched on the comm system in his ears.

"Caitlin," he said, "We lost Barry."

"I know," she replied, "Sorry. He can't help it."

"Talk me through how to deactivate this thing," he said.

"Okay, so if my schematics of the Markov device are correct, there should be a metal hatch on the side," she said, wasting no time in getting to her directions. Leonard felt along the side of the machine until he found a raised panel, "Open that."

He did, revealing a complicated tangle of wires of varying sizes and lengths.

"There's one wire," Caitlin continued, "That acts as a failsafe and immediately triggers the earthquake, so don't cut that one."

"Really?" Leonard said sarcastically.

"All I'm saying is just don't randomly start cutting wires," she said defensively, "Just listen to me and it'll be fine. Okay, look into the control panel. All of the wires should plug in at one end into a row of outlets at the top of the panel, and plug in at the other end to another row of outlets at the bottom of the panel. Do you see that?"

"Yes," Leonard said, blasting a guard with a shot from his cold gun over his shoulder.

"There are ten rows of outlets for ten wires, right?"

Leonard quickly counted.

"Yes."

"Len!" Sara said, he whipped around to face her, his finger on the trigger of the cold gun, "They brought reinforcements."

Pounding footsteps of guards approaching from all four tunnels was added to the din.

Leonard shot at as many of them as he could before he had to turn back to the Markov device.

"Do you see the wire that goes from the fourth top outlet and the ninth bottom outlet?" Caitlin asked.

"Yeah."

"Cut that one."

He pulled the pair of small metal scissors Caitlin had supplied him with out of his coat pocket and carefully cut the wire.

"Okay," he said, "I did it."

"Did anything explode?" Caitlin asked.

"No?" he said, not sure why she was asking that question.

"That's a good sign. Now, is there one that goes from the third top outlet to the bottom fifth outlet?"

"No," Leonard said after a moment of squinting into the narrow panel, "But there's one from three to six."

There was a moment of silence.

"That's what I meant," Caitlin said after she returned, "Cisco's handwriting is awful."

There was a faint "sorry" in the background of the Comm feed that Leonard assumed came from Cisco.

"Cut that wire," Caitlin said, and Leonard did what he was told, "Just one more. Cut the wire from the first outlet to the —"

"Duck, Len!" Sara said. He crouched down and watched one of Sara's throwing stars whistle over his head and lodge itself between an incoming guard's shoulder blades. The guard arched his back and dropped to the floor.

"Say that again, Caitlin," he said, standing up.

"Outlet one to outlet eight," she repeated. He cut the wire and all the lights on the Markov device went out and a whirring noise Leonard hadn't even been aware of until now ceased.

"You did it!" Sara exclaimed. She ran towards him and wrapped her arms around his neck. He caught her, lifting her off of her feet, and spun her in a circle. He put her down and looked around the tunnel.

"So did you," he said, regarding the circle of unconscious guards forming a circle around the Markov device, "Where'd a homicide detect like you learn to fight like that?"

"A _cop_ ," Sara corrected.

A spot of red on Sara's shirt, falling right on her abdomen, caught his eye.

"Sara, You're hurt," he said.

Sara shook her head, "I think my stitches got pulled out in the fight. I'm fine."

"But—"

"Len, I've been through labor. This is nothing."

Leonard held his hands up in surrender.

A phone rang. Sara fished it out of her jacket pocket.

"Hello?"

"You think you've outsmarted me."

"Merlyn," she growled. Leonard took a step closer to her.

"You think you and your boyfriend can actually defeat me," Merlyn said, "Tracking down the Markov device, taking out my guards, shutting the machine down, I'll admit, I'm impressed, but not unprepared. I'll have you know that there is a second Markov device ready, this one not so easily trackable, and if you don't believe me…"

There was a quaking sensation beneath their feet. Sara grabbed Leonard's arm and he wrapped an arm around her waist, bracing her from falling over.

Dust fell from the shaking ceiling and the fluorescent lights flickered and sparked. They heard screams from outside the tunnel.

And then it was over.

"That was just a taste of what's coming in, _oh, look at the time_ , one hour. Good luck."

There was a click and the line went dead.

They immediately went back to the car.

"Wait, what about Barry?" Sara asked as Leonard pulled the car into the main traffic tunnel.

"I'm sure he'll get back to the lab in time on his own," Leonard responded.

It was harder to get to S.T.A.R. Labs this time around. Merlyn's test drive of the Markov device had spooked Central City. The roads were already crowded with people trying to leave, cars honking and people shouting. A drive that normally would have taken no more than five minutes took twice as long.

When they finally got to S.T.A.R. Labs, they jumped out of the car and hurried into the building. As they had predicted, Barry was already there.

"What's the plan?" Sara asked, "Caitlin, can you track down this new Markov device?"

"I'm sure I _could_ ," Caitlin replied, grabbing a tray of medical supplies off of a side table. She too had seen Sara's wounds and was already starting to stitch her back up, "But I think it might be time to consider that we _shouldn't_."

"What do you mean?"

"Look, we don't even have an hour left," she continued, her eyes not leaving the stitches, "This device will be harder to find and probably harder to deactivate. With the first one, we had time to go over the schematics and figure out exactly how to disarm it. I won't be able to do that for this one. I think maybe it'll be better to get out of the city and do our part to help when all this is over."

"And you all back her up?" Leonard asked, addressing the rest of the team. They all nodded.

"Then what are we gonna do?" Wally asked, "Just stay here, at S.T.A.R. Labs?"

"We don't exactly know the range of the earthquake," Wells said, "This building has preventative measures against radiation, electromagnetic waves, nuclear energy, hell, even UV rays, but when it comes down to the basics of architecture and the fundamental foundation of buildings, there's only so much you can do. There's a chance this building may not hold up against a massive earthquake."

"I may have another option," Leonard said, "a safe house, about forty-five minutes out of the city."

"You're offering?" Barry asked, his forehead crinkling with skepticism.

He shrugged.

"Why not?"

"Okay, well, thanks," Barry replied, his confusion not yet fading, "We should go then."

"You're all set, Sara," Caitlin said, cutting the thread and lowering her t-shirt.

"Thanks, Cait," Sara said gratefully.

"Anytime."

Jesse stood and handed the sleeping Avery to Sara. She shifted slightly, but much to Sara's relief, didn't wake up.

"I'll text you the address," Leonard told the team, "You know I'm telling you this in confidence, right? I'm not gonna wake up one day to cops banging on my door?"

"Don't worry," Barry said, "Your secret's safe with us."

Leonard nodded curtly and followed Sara out of the Cortex.

Avery woke up as Sara was strapping her into her carseat.

"No-no-no," Sara said, "You're still sleeping. You're still asleep."

"Does that work?" Leonard asked, "Just telling her she's still asleep?"

"It _usually_ does," she replied, seeing that Avery's eyes weren't closing.

She walked around the car and sat in the driver's seat. She pulled out of the S.T.A.R. Labs parking lot.

"Mommy," Avery said.

"Yes, honey," Sara responded.

"Where are we going?"

"We're going home for a few minutes and then we're gonna go on a little trip."

"For how long?"

"I dunno, yet, Avie. It's a mystery."

"Okay," she replied. She was quiet the rest of the ride to apartment.

Leonard briefly returned to his apartment, saying he'd come over to theirs when he was ready.

When Sara and Avery entered their own apartment, Sara immediately checked the clock. It read 7:32.

"Ave, you've got two minutes to go pick out a snack to bring in the car. We have to go."

While Avery was in the kitchen, Sara went into her bedroom. In her closet were two packed backpacks — one for her, one for Avery — that had been ready just for this. Inside each one was a few changes of clothes, Avery's had several of her favorite toys, and Sara's had a book she had yet to read. She'd had a feeling things would go sideways and was determined to be prepared.

Her efforts had clearly paid off.

Things had definitely gone sideways and now there was no going back.

Leonard was back in her apartment in minutes.

"Where's Lisa?" Sara asked him as she helped Avery into her backpack.

"She's going up to the house with Cisco," he replied.

"Ooh," she paused getting Avery's arm into the backpack strap to shoot him a suggestive look, "Is she now? And how do we feel about that?"

"We don't need to talk about it," he grumbled in response. She smirked at him.

"Mommy," Avery said quietly.

"Yes, baby, what is it?" Sara crouched down to her level. She knew that Avery could tell something bad was happening. They'd been trying to keep the details from her — a hysterical toddler was not going to help the situation they were in at all — but she was a smart girl. She knew something wrong, her subdued movements and the lack of her usual barrage of words said enough.

"Are we gonna be gone for a lotta days?" she asked.

"I don't know," Sara replied honestly.

"How are we gonna do the daily bubble if we're going away?"

" _Oh_ ," Sara said, understanding what Avery needed, "Do you want to bring the daily bubble with us so we can do it while we're away?"

Avery nodded.

"Okay, but you have to get everything really fast. It's time to go."

Avery dropped her bunny on the living room floor and made a mad dash for the balcony, she came back a moment later with the tupperware container filled with soapy liquid in one hand and the bubble wand in the other. Sara quickly placed them in a gallon sized ziplock bag and sealed it.

"Great," she said, tucking the bag into Avery's backpack, "Let's go."

Sara took her hand and they all left the apartment.

Leonard had offered to drive to the safe house, as he already knew how to get there, so Sara buckled Avery into her carseat and then opened the passenger side door and climbed in.

"Ready?" Leonard asked as he started the car. Sara nodded and he pulled the car out onto the street.

The CCPD was conducting a mass evacuation of the city and the streets were packed with cars all trying to make their escape.

Luckily, Leonard knew of backstreets and other various shortcuts — including even a parking garage with two entrances — that took them around the traffic.

They both knew that it would be impossible to get everyone in the city out of range of the blast, even under the best of circumstances. Most people would end up stuck in the middle of a collapsing city.

Sara and Leonard were both aware that the city they were leaving, with all its tall skyscrapers and little cafés and sprawling parks, was not the same city they would return to — if there was a city to return to at all.

The three were all quiet, all aware they were seeing the last of the city's true beauty.

"Mommy," Avery said as they were a few minutes away from the bridge that would take them out of Central City.

"Yes," Sara replied, looking at Avery in the rearview mirror.

"Where's my bunny?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know where she is."

"Did you put her in your backpack?"

Avery shook her head. Sara suddenly recalled the bunny blanket being tossed to the floor when she went onto the balcony to get the daily bubble tupperware and wand.

"Honey," Sara said, feeling a sinking sensation in her stomach, "I think you left your bunny at home."

"Can we go back and get her?"

"No, baby, I'm so sorry, but we can't. We really have to get where we're going," Sara replied, "Why don't you go to sleep Avie. When you wake up, we'll be at a whole new place to explore."

"I can't sleep without my bunny," Avery whimpered. Then, the waterworks started. At first it was a quiet sniffle, but soon it became loud wailing, a song that seemed to match all of Central City before its demise.

* * *

 **My month of craziness has ended so I should be back to regular updates again (until mid-June when finals start again. Yay.)**


	12. Chapter 12

Avery cried over her forgotten bunny for not even ten minutes, but it felt like much longer than that to Leonard and Sara. Neither of them were mad or frustrated with her, but her wails didn't exactly help the situation they were in at all.

Sara spent several minutes twisted in her seat trying to console Avery, rubbing a hand comfortingly up and down her leg and holding her hand, but when nothing seemed to be calming her, she turned back in her chair and let Avery's tears peter out on their own.

She eventually tired herself out, her cries fading to a quiet whimper until, finally, she fell asleep, even without her bunny blanket.

The peace and quiet didn't last long.

They were a few minutes out of the city when the clock struck seven. At once, they felt the effects of the earthquake rolling across the ground in heavy waves. Sara turned in her seat to look at the city shrinking behind them. She could already see a plume of smoke rising into the air. Their car was far enough out of range that they didn't feel the quaking sensations as much as they heard them, loud and deep sounds punctuated by distant crashes and explosions.

It didn't take Avery too long to be roused by the sound of the earthquake and to start crying once again. Instead off the cries of despair Leonard and Sara had been subject to at the loss of her bunny blanket, these were wails of fear and confusion.

Neither Sara nor Leonard blamed her; they were just as afraid and confused as she was.

Sara couldn't even think of how to comfort her daughter. This was unlike any injury or nightmare she'd ever had. Kissing her boo-boos or telling her it was just a dream wouldn't work for this.

She couldn't even tell her it was all going to be okay, because Sara didn't know if that was true. All she could do was sit very still in her seat and wait for it all to be over.

Sara flinched with every shaking rumble, convinced with every sound that the ground would open up and suck them into it.

Leonard reached over and took her hand in his. Sara felt herself relax, the way his was his hand completely engulfed hers somehow easing her nerves.

He didn't really know why he'd done it, held her hand. He'd just seen how nervous she was, and her hand had been right there, her fingers drumming on the leather top to the glove box. He didn't want her to be sitting alone in fear, so he did it, he held her hand.

He considered it a good sign that she didn't try to pull away, so he didn't either. Sara was trying her best to put on a brave face, especially for Avery's sake, but Leonard could tell she was shaken by what was happening.

He'd be lying if he said he wasn't shaken up himself.

He had been so sure he wouldn't end up here. Sure, when he'd first been planning this mission, he'd imagined hitches and hiccups, but he'd also envisioned success. Back in his career as a criminal — God, that seemed so long ago now — his heists had always been successful. Now, the one time it mattered, he had failed, and now countless people were going to be hurt by what he hadn't been able to do.

He hadn't anticipated failure. He hadn't anticipated driving away from a city facing total destruction. Where did this all go wrong? It wasn't as if he'd had an exact plan when he started, but he'd never even imagined the path it had ended up taking.

A rumbling crash that shook the car had Sara's hand tightening around his own. He looked over to see her eyes squeezed shut. He turned back to the road, running his thumb back and forth across the back of her hand.

He'd never thought Sara would end up working with him. When they first met, she was working _against_ him, running the police case against him. When they first met, Leonard had been ready to leave, to get as far away from the pretty homicide detective across the hall as he could.

Now, somehow, she and her daughter were two of the most important people in his life.

He wondered how the mission would have gone if Sara hadn't been with him along the way. A part of him thought that maybe it could have gone better. He had, after all, spent an awful lot of time with her and Avery, especially while Sara was recovering from her bullet wound to the stomach, courtesy of Malcolm Merlyn. Maybe that time would have been better spent working directly on the mission. He thought about helping Avery with projects at school and Friday movie nights. He thought about stitching up wounds with Sara and sitting with her for hours just talking about _anything_.

Past missions (although heists were probably a better word for them) had been time consuming. It would be all he could think about, and he wouldn't rest until he had a plan, plus a backup plan for when things fell apart and, sometimes even a backup plan for the backup plan. He couldn't say he was proud of what those missions had entailed; he had changed so much in the past few months, but he had to admit that his success rate during that time had been near perfect. It was obvious that the same work ethic from those heists hadn't translated over to this mission.

Maybe Sara and Avery were a distraction. Maybe that was why the mission had failed.

 _No,_ he insisted. He wouldn't think like that. Her connections with the cops had helped them gain intel on people involving Merlyn's plan. Leonard wouldn't have been able to disarm the Markov device without Sara holding off the guards. That part of the mission wouldn't have happened without her.

He was constantly amazed by her strength. She'd proved her fighting abilities time and time against when they fought side by side. Hell, she'd fought with a bullet in her arm and another in her stomach. She had remained calm when Merlyn had kidnapped Avery. Sara had contributed to the mission in enough ways to prove her worth a hundred times over.

He was then reminded of something Mick Rory had told him several weeks ago. It was at the bar Saints and Sinners, when Sara had been at S.T.A.R. Labs, fighting for her life after Merlyn shot her in the stomach. Leonard had been so mad in that moment, mad at the universe for hurting Sara when she'd never done anything to deserve it, mad at Merlyn for shooting Sara and scaring Avery, mad at himself for putting them both in harms way. He had been unsure of how to channel that anger but knew that it needed to go somewhere. Mick had said something along the lines of what's done is done; focusing on the past couldn't help anything move forward.

It didn't matter how the mission had or hadn't happened or what could or couldn't have been changed. He now had to live with the effects of the decisions he made, the good and the bad.

* * *

The further away Sara, Leonard, and Avery got from the city, the less they felt the impact of the earthquake. The shaking slowly ceased, with the exception of a few stronger tremors. The sounds, the crashes and the explosions, although not truly gone, faded into the distance like thunder after a storm.

Avery's wails dissipated with it and soon she had fallen asleep yet again.

There was no reason for Leonard to still be holding Sara's hand, but he didn't let go, their fingers laced behind the gear shift.

They arrived at the safe house in a little under an hour. It was nearly invisible as they drove up the gravel road, blocked by tall pine trees.

It was not what Sara had expected. She had imagined a small, rundown little house that was really only suited for its namesake: a place to stay in an emergency, when you wanted to fall completely off the grid.

It did appear to be small, so Sara got that right, but instead of a ramshackle building, she saw a charming cabin-style house built on the edge of a cliff halfway up Mount Buccelato, the mountain range just outside of Central City. The house had seemingly been built into the trees, as if the builders had taken a huge ice cream scoop and made the perfect spot for that house and that house alone. The lower hanging branches of short maple trees fell over the safe house like a picture frame. The back of the cabin faced Central City Bay, and in the distance, the skyline of the city was visible. The front opened up to a wide grassy field that rivaled the one in the movie _The Sound of Music_. All around them they could see the white tops of the surrounding mountains in the distance.

They were the first ones there, so Leonard drove the car all the way up to the front of the house and pulled the key out of the ignition.

Leonard opened the door and stepped out of the car. He walked around to the passenger side where Sara was just standing up.

She sighed heavily and looked up at him with sad blue eyes. The last time Sara had looked this sad was around Father's Day, when she'd had to explain to Avery why she didn't have a dad like all of her friends. He'd hated seeing Sara looking so sad, but he didn't feel that they were close enough yet for him to do anything to comfort her.

Now, however, was a different story.

Acting on impulse, he stepped forwards and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. To his surprise she instantly gave in to the hug, her arms going around his waist, her fingers gripping the back of his leather jacket. Her forehead was pressed against his chest and Leonard could feel her slow, heavy exhales. He rested his chin on the top of her head, her hair brushing his neck.

He waited for Sara to pull away. He met her eyes once again. She managed a small smile.

"Thanks," she said, her voice slightly raspy after disuse.

"I can get the bags," he said. Sara nodded and closed her car door. As Sara walked around to the backseat where Avery was sleeping, Leonard moved to the trunk. He opened the door and pulled the few bags and backpacks they had brought with them out of the car. He then went to the backseat where Sara was gingerly unbuckling Avery from her carseat. She carefully lifted her out of the car, being careful to not wake her. They both knew that without her bunny, it was unlikely that they would get her back to sleep if she woke up.

He carried her to the front door of the safe house where he reached into his back pocket and extracted the key. He unlocked the door and walked inside, flipping the lights on to reveal the cabin's interior.

The outside of the cabin did not convey its true size, however, that was sort of the point. Passersby would see a quaint wooden cabin with a little porch and think nothing of it. Inside, however, it proved to be much bigger than it appeared.

The front door opened to the top floor, nothing but a wide balcony-style hallway leading to the back deck. It seemed the cabin wasn't just built on the cliff, but _over_ it, supported by several concrete beams that stretched into the water below. Looking over the railing revealed the bottom floor, where the rest of the house lay.

"Damn, Snart," Sara said appreciatively, "This whole time you've had this place and I'm just seeing it now?"

"I don't come out here often," Leonard admitted, "It's a little…inaccessible, and anyway, I prefer the city."

"I don't hear you complaining now," she replied.

"It does have its uses."

"How'd you come by it, or is expensive real estate, what, a hobby?"

"It was actually payment for a job I pulled with an old partner a few years back."

"Mick?"

"Do you see any scorch marks?" Leonard said, looking around the house, "No, another one. I'm not sure what happened to him, actually. I've only come up here a few times since then."

"Well it's a good thing you held onto it. I don't know what we would have done without you _graciously_ offering it up."

"Don't underestimate your intelligence, I'm sure you would have thought of something," Leonard responded, "Do you want to put Ave in one of the bedrooms?"

Sara nodded and followed him down the stairs and into the lower level of the cabin. It really was a gorgeous house, with wooded walls and floors and tall vaulted ceilings supported by wooden beams. The downstairs had an open floor plan, with the kitchen, the living room, and the dining room all in the same space, but in no way did it feel cramped.

Leonard led her down a hallway with at least six doors.

"Are all of these bedrooms?" Sara asked.

"And bathrooms," he nodded. He opened one of the doors and led Sara into one of the bedrooms. It was filled with wooden furniture: a bed of dark pine, a matching bedside table and a heavy looking dresser. Sara set Avery down on the plaid blanket.

"You can stay in here with her tonight if you want but there's also the bedrooms next door too."

Sara nodded. They heard the sounds of tires rolling against loose rocks.

"Sounds like someone else finally got here," he said. They both left the bedroom, Sara quietly shutting the door behind them.

The new car brought with it Caitlin and Harry. Leonard and Sara went to greet them and led them down to the living room.

"It's pretty bad out there," Caitlin said when they were all seated around the black leather couch.

"Really?" Sara asked.

"Yeah, they've closed off all ways in and out of the city except for one bridge. We almost didn't get out," she replied.

"How long do you think these explosions are gonna last?"

"By our calculations of the Markov device's strength, it could go all night," Wells answered.

Sara nodded solemnly. She noticed a funny look on Leonard's face.

"You okay?" she asked quietly, the hand that had been on the back of the couch falling to rest on his shoulder.

"I'm fine," he nodded. Sara didn't believe him, but she didn't press him on the matter either.

Not too long after, Lisa and Cisco arrived.

"Nice place you got here, Cold," Cisco said, looking around the cabin appreciatively.

"Don't get any ideas about showing up here unannounced, Ramon," Leonard warned him, "This place is invite only."

"Ignore him," Lisa rolled her eyes, dropping onto the couch.

They spent the next few minutes talking about anything besides what was happening in Central City.

During this, Lisa noticed that something was different between her brother and Sara. It wasn't a bad sort of different, but different nonetheless. She also definitely didn't miss how close they were sitting on the couch. Leonard had his long legs stretched in front of him, and Sara was sitting with her legs curled by her side. Her elbow rested on the couch cushions right behind Leonard's shoulder and her knees were touching his thigh. She noticed the way Leonard kept glancing at Sara — not _nervously_ , exactly, but uneasily, as if he was checking to make sure she was okay.

Lisa didn't know exactly what had happened during the car ride from their apartment complex to here, but whatever it was had dramatically altered the dynamic between the two.

The last people to arrive at the safe house were Barry and Iris. They all stood up when they entered the cabin and walked down the stairs.

"Is everyone here?" Barry asked urgently, scanning the room, "Where's Joe?"

"Bar," Iris said, "We talked about this. He stayed behind with the rest of the CCPD to help people in Central City."

He nodded, but almost immediately, panic flooded his face again.

"Oh my God, where's Avery?"

"She's asleep in one of the bedrooms," Sara quickly reassured him, gesturing towards the hallway of rooms.

"Okay," he sighed, but the relief didn't last long, "I have to go back. So many innocent people are gonna get hurt. I have to go help them."

Iris nodded solemnly. She knew there was no way to stop her fiancé when he got in this mindset. After a moment, Leonard stood up.

"I want to go too," he said.

"Wait, what?" Sara asked.

"I've had just as much a part in this as Barry has — _more_ , even," he explained to her. "I'd feel wrong sitting here while innocent people are dying because of what I wasn't able to do."

Barry nodded and Leonard followed him with long strides back out of the cabin.

Sara stood rooted to the spot, her eyebrows furrowed. She did not agree with what was happening right now, but she couldn't explain why.

She was almost content with letting it go. Leonard was, after all, his own person. He was free to do whatever he pleased and Sara had very little right to try to stop him.

Then they heard a low rumbling noise and the floor started to shake. It seemed that that Markov device was only gaining in strength, and if it could reach them all the way out here, she could only imagine what it was doing to Central City.

Sara was jolted into action. Leonard was already up the stairs and out the front door, so Sara jogged to catch up with him.

"Len!" she called, "Wait!"

She grabbed his shoulder and turned him around to face her.

"Sara, what is it—"

Sara launched herself forward and pressed her lips against his. She stood on her toes to snake her arms around his neck. She thought he might try to pull away from her, but on the contrary, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer to him, deepening the kiss. Sara felt her breath hitch in her throat at his touch.

Finally, after what felt like eons, she stepped away.

"If you die out there I'm gonna kill you," she said, her lips upturning into a smirk. It took a moment for Leonard's look of absolute shock to fade, but finally, he smirked back.

"I wouldn't dare," he replied, "You'd enjoy it too much."

And then he was gone.

* * *

 **It finally happened! I was starting to think we'd never get here, but we made it!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Sorry for the _crazy_ late update. I had my finals and had to study (ugh). But they're officially over now and I'm on summer vacation so I should be able to go back to the regular update schedule - fingers crossed :)**

* * *

"So," Barry said, a mischievous glint in his eye, "That was certainly something."

Leonard said nothing, but gripped the steering wheel tighter.

He and Barry were on their way back to Central City, to help the remaining people who hadn't been able to get out like they had.

"Sara Lance, huh?" Barry said, "Well, you've always had good taste about other things, so I don't know why I'm surprised."

"We don't need to talk about this," Leonard replied.

"Well, I think we should."

"What, you're gonna tell me that you'll never forgive me if I hurt her?"

"Actually, the opposite," Barry responded.

"What?"

"We've all seen how you look at her. You think you have us fooled — you definitely have yourself fooled — but we've all seen it."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Leonard said defensively.

"You know, the look like she was the only person who mattered in the world. _You_ used to be the only person who mattered in your world. You care about her just as much as you care about yourself — _more_ even. If you can't admit it to me, at least admit it to yourself."

"Admit _what_?"

"Admit that you love her."

All the anger and frustrated vanished from his face.

"See, you're smiling just thinking about her," Barry smirked.

"No I'm not," he argued, his face hardening again.

"Look," Barry said, "Fine, I won't make you say anything you don't want to say, but you should keep all this in mind when you're out there in Central City. Don't do anything stupid. You've got some people waiting for you to come home."

* * *

Waiting wasn't exactly what Sara was doing. It wasn't like he was ready by the door, waiting to see headlights in the window, but where Leonard was and what he was doing was always in the back of her mind.

Sara was sitting on the upstairs deck of the cabin. From her spot on the wicker couch, she could see Central City across the bay. All of the lights were out but the skyline was still visible, outlined by flames and explosions that she could hear all the way out here.

The porch door opened and Sara turned to see Lisa walking towards her with Avery in her arms. She stood up.

"Guess who's awake," Lisa said, passing Avery over to her mother.

"Hey baby," Sara said, kissing the top of her head.

"She was asking for you," Lisa continued, "I think she's a little confused about where she is."

"Thanks Lis," Sara said gratefully. Lisa nodded and left the deck.

"How come you woke up?" Sara asked, sitting back on the couch, adjusting Avery in her lap so she was facing her.

"I'm not tired," she replied. That made sense, Sara thought. She'd managed to get Avery to fall asleep around six o'clock that evening so she, Leonard, and the team at S.T.A.R. Labs wouldn't have a panicked toddler in the way while they were carrying out their mission. Six o'clock was two hours earlier than Avery's normal bedtime, but Sara had hoped that she might sleep through the night anyway. Wishful thinking, she supposed.

"Where are we?" Avery asked.

"We're at Lenny's house," Sara replied.

"Lenny has a house?"

"Yeah, he does."

"How come he lives in an apartment when he could just live here?"

"Because this house is just for emergencies."

"It's an emergency?"

Sara let out a deep breath. She'd been holding off on explaining to Avery what was happening. She was pretty sure she had a basic idea of what was going on, but she had been told very few specifics. Sara hadn't felt the need to tell her anything throughout the mission because she didn't want to scare her if she didn't have to. She had thought the mission would be a success, but it wasn't. This was really happening and Avery deserved an explanation.

Sara picked her up and carried her to the deck railing. With the arm that wasn't holding Avery, she pointed across the bay towards the city.

"Do you see all the lights and clouds on the other side of the water?" she asked. Avery nodded, leaning over to grip the railing, "It's not really lights and clouds. It's fire and smoke. Your Uncle Malcolm built this machine that would make a big earthquake. Earthquakes are bad because they shake the ground and can make buildings fall down and other bad things happen. We came all the way out here so we can't get hurt."

"Why did Uncle Malcolm want to make an earthquake?"

"Because he thought that he would scare people, and it's easier to make scared people do what you want."

"But where did Lenny go?" she asked, turning away from the city skyline to meet her mother's eyes.

"He went back to Central City," Sara replied, "to help people who couldn't get somewhere safe like we did."

"But does that mean he's gonna get hurt by the earthquakes 'cause he went back there?" Avery asked, her voice full of concern.

"I don't know," she said truthfully, "I really don't know, honey. I don't know what he's doing right now, but I trust that he knows how to take care of himself."

"He's gonna come back?"

"He better."

Avery nodded.

The porch door opened and Caitlin stepped onto the deck.

"Sara, come look at this," she said. Sara followed her into the living room, where the TV was on and playing what appeared to be a newsfeed of a hurricane-ravaged wreck.

"What is this?" she asked.

"Central City," Caitlin responded solemnly.

"But how? Why are we able to see this? I figured all the cable lines would be knocked down by now."

"They probably are," Cisco replied from his spot on the couch, "These are the new wireless drones that news channels have been using to live-document disasters. This one's been switching from feed to feed every few minutes."

Sara set Avery up at the kitchen island with a coloring book and some crayons and then sat on the couch.

The drones were catching shots of everything. They witnessed entire buildings collapsing and power lines being ripped to the ground, exploding at people's feet. Every once and a while, they would see a red stream of electricity and they knew that Barry was in Central City, doing whatever he could to help.

Sara didn't want to be watching this. She didn't need the on-air reminder that she and Leonard had failed. They hadn't been able to stop the explosion, and here, displayed in high-definition and with perfect clarity, was the result.

She couldn't look away. That's the thing. People are drawn to terror and tragedy, both reminders of all someone has, and all they have to lose.

Sara could feel her chest constricting and her heart pounding, but she couldn't rip her eyes away.

"Oh my god," Iris said, pointing to the TV, "That little boy's gonna get killed."

Indeed, a boy, probably around eight or nine years old, was standing in front of an old concrete building that had cracked and was starting to crumble.

"Move, kid!" Cisco urged him, but his efforts were fruitless. The boy was frozen in place, staring in horror at the stone behemoth that was about to topple over. Caitlin turned and buried her face in Harry's shoulder, hiding her eyes from the tragedy about to ensue. She was the only one able to look away.

A piece of the cement wall fell from a lower part of the building, crashing to the ground and releasing a cloud of smoke and dust, but the boy still didn't move.

Sara felt so sure they were about to watch him die. Suddenly the building folded in on itself and the building swayed forwards. Just as pieces of wall fractured like glass shards from a mirror, a tall figure came into view. She instantly know who it was; she recognized they way he moved, the way he held himself.

"That's—" Sara whispered, her voice failing her.

"Lenny!" Lisa yelled at him.

But he couldn't hear her. He was miles away and she was really only shouting at a TV screen.

As Leonard ran to the kid, the building's foundation gave out and the whole thing fell forwards. The screen flooded with more dust clouds and smoke as stone smashed against the ground. As Leonard moved to pick up the little boy, they saw the outline of a piece of wall break off the collapsing building and plummet to the ground, its target right where they were standing.

"Move Len," Sara whispered.

Finally, Leonard got the boy to move, but it was clear he was too late; the piece of wall was mere feet away now and the distance was steadily closing. Dust billowed up from the fallen cement, blocking the drone's camera from fully picking up what was happening, but Sara could faintly see Leonard bend his knees, ready to leap away from the stone. It was too late. The stone was only a few inches away from hitting Leonard, who was still right under its line of fire.

Sara sucked in her breath, her fingernails digging so hard into her palms that it hurt.

This didn't seem fair. _None of this_ seemed fair. Sara asked for so little from this world and the one time she thought something was going right, it was being ripped away right in front of her eyes.

Just before the stone made its impact, the feed switched to a view of a park with uprooted trees and overturned branches.

Sara could swear she felt the tremor from the piece of stone wall crashing to the ground.

" _No!_ " Sara screamed, jumping to her feet.

"Mommy?" Avery started to cry, startled by her mother's sudden anguish. Iris got up and hurried over to her, scooping her up and bringing her into another room, away from all the chaos.

Sara started to run up the dark wooden stairs towards the door. Lisa jumped up and tore after her.

"Sara, wait!" she said, catching her arm and stopping her in her tracks, "Where are you going?"

"I have to go to Central City. I have to help him," she insisted, wrenching her arm out of Lisa's grip and continuing to the door. She made it all the way outside before Lisa caught up with her, grabbing her shoulders and spinning her around to face her.

"Let me go, Lisa," Sara said, trying to pull away from her. Lisa maintained a strong hold on her upper arms.

"I can't, Sara, I'm so sorry."

"Didn't you see that? A _building_ fell on him. I have to go help him."

"We don't know if that happened," Lisa said, "All that smoke was blocking everything and the feed got cut off. He could have gotten out!"

"But what if he didn't?" Sara asked desperately, her eyes glistening like dewdrops on grass, "Aren't you afraid that he didn't?"

"Yes, of course I'm afraid, he's my brother!" she replied, "But I can't think like that or I'll go crazy, and neither should you."

"He promised me he wouldn't died," Sara said, "He promised!"

For the first time since Lisa had met her, Sara started to cry. Lisa let go of Sara's shoulders to pull her into a hug. Sara collapsed against her, her arms drawn in and her bunched fists pressing against Lisa's collarbone.

"He didn't die!" Lisa said, "He can't have. He didn't die. He's gonna come back to you and you're both gonna be so happy. I can tell he loves you so much. I can just tell, and he wouldn't leave you like this— he wouldn't leave you at all, given the choice. He's going to come back to you."

* * *

Lisa eventually managed to get Sara back inside the house. She brought her down to one of the bedrooms so she could calm down and wrap her head around what had happened.

Lisa had done her best to be reassuring, but truth be told, she wasn't so sure that Leonard _was_ okay. In fact, she was terrified that Sara's fears were the reality. With phone lines down, there was no way for her to find out whether Leonard was okay or not. She would just have to wait until Barry returned to find out what happening.

"Lisa?"

She felt a tugging sensation at the hem of her shirt and looked down to see Avery looking up at her with wide eyes.

"Avie, what is it?"

"What happened to my mommy?"

Lisa lifted Avery up under her arms and carried her into the kitchen.

"Here's the thing, Avie," Lisa said, sitting her on the marble kitchen island, "There's a lot of bad things happening in Central City right now. We were lucky 'cause we were able to get out and come here where it's safe, but a lot of people couldn't leave like we did."

"But why's my mommy so scared?" she asked.

"The news is showing real videos of what's happening back home and it's playing on TV. We were watching it to see what's going on and we saw Lenny. We saw that maybe he got hurt, but we aren't sure. Your mom cares about Lenny very much, so she's just worried about him."

"Oh," Avery replied, her lips parting, "Can we call him and ask if he's okay?"

"You know, that's a really good idea, Avery, but all the power lines are down so our phones aren't gonna work. We're just gonna have to wait for him to come back to find out what happened."

Avery nodded.

"What do you think happened?"

"I think it's your mommy's job to tell you that," Lisa replied.

"When can I see my mommy?"

"In a little bit, I promise."

* * *

 _A little bit_ ended up being about fifteen minutes later.

Sara walked into the kitchen to see Avery and Lisa coloring at the counter. Lisa was clearly trying to keep Avery distracted.

"C'mere Avery," Sara said, reaching an arm out towards her. Lisa helped her off the counter and Avery ran over to grab her hand. Sara brought her back to the same bedroom she'd put her in when they first arrived, sitting on the bed and standing Avery directly in front of her so they were almost eye to eye.

"You're sad, Mommy," Avery said, reaching out to wipe away a stray tear Sara hadn't noticed. Sara smiled and reached up to hold her wrist, feeling her tiny hand pressed against her cheek.

"I am sad," she nodded, "Did Lisa tell you why?"

Avery nodded.

"She said Lenny might'a gotten hurt but we wont know until he comes back later."

"That's right," Sara confirmed, "but I wanna be honest with you. Do you know what honest means?"

"No." Avery shook her head.

"I means I wanna tell you the whole truth of what's happening — every detail— because you're a big girl and I know you can handle it."

Avery nodded.

"Okay, so when we were watching the news and we saw Lenny, we saw a building start to fall and it looked like it was gonna fall on Lenny, but the channel changed and we never found out what happened to him. That's bad because if the building did fall on him, he could be really hurt right now."

"Can you kiss all the owies better?" Avery asked.

Sara almost let out a laugh at the irony of her statement.

"That's the thing, Ave," Sara replied, "Sometimes owies are so bad that kisses can't help. Sometimes nothing can help, so there's a chance," she hesitated, "there's a chance Lenny won't come back."

We couldn't really see on TV what happened to him, but we know it was bad, so there's a chance," she hesitated, "there's a chance Lenny won't come back."

"Like he died?"

 _Smart girl_ , Sara thought.

"Yes," she nodded.

"And that's why you're so sad?"

"Yes," Sara repeated, "That's why I'm sad."

Avery climbed into Sara's lap and wrapped her arms around her neck, burying her face in her hair. Sara rubbed a hand up and down her back.

"Mommy," Avery asked after a few minutes.

"Yes?"

"Do you love Lenny?"

Sara felt her heart get a little heavier.

"Yes," she finally responded.

How hadn't she known until now?

She thought back to the last several months, all the times he'd been the first person she'd call when she needed something, how easily she found it was talking to him about things she'd tried to not even _think_ about. Even just an hour or two ago when they were sitting together on the couch, Sara realized they'd been sitting like she'd seen Tommy and Laurel sit before, like they were the only people they needed in the world.

No wonder Lisa had been sending them weird looks.

Now, Sara didn't know what to do. As much as she appreciated Lisa's attempts to reassure her, she had to admit she had a hard time believing that what she said was true. Sara saw the video. That block of cement wall had been way to close to smashing down on Leonard and that little boy for Sara to even imagine a realistic way they could have escaped.

Leonard was dying, if not already dead, and the sooner Sara wrapped her head around that, the sooner she could get over all this.

But she didn't want to get over it. She didn't want to get over Leonard.

How was she going to explain any of this to anyone? It's not like Laurel or her father could understand why she was so upset. Mourning Leonard felt like mourning the love of her life, but that hadn't been true. Perhaps he almost had been that, but neither of them would ever know.

 _Almost_.

God, that word killed her.

It was true though. Leonard was her almost, her could've been.

She couldn't explain an almost to her father.

It was borderline crazy to think that her daughter — a four year old — could understand more of this that her dad, although it did make some sense. Avery had been with her and Leonard every step of the way, even in ways she shouldn't have had to.

"Mommy?" Avery's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Mmm-hmm," she nodded.

"Can you stay with me 'til I fall asleep?" she asked.

"Of course I can, Avie," Sara nodded. She lifted Avery up and laid her down on the bed. Avery pushed her legs underneath the quilt and pulled it up to her shoulders, curling towards her mother. Sara lay down next to her and pulled Avery close, resting her chin on top of her head.

"Mommy," Avery whispered into Sara's hair, "I don't think Lenny's dead."

"I really hope you're right, baby," Sara murmured back, "I really do."

Sara ran a hand up and down Avery's back and waited for her to fall asleep.

She had only planned to stay until Avery was sleeping, but her legs started to feel like lead and her eyelids were getting heavier and heavier. She knew she should get up. She should wait for Barry to return to the cabin and tell them what happened, but she was just so tired…

* * *

Sara was awoken when Lisa threw the door open.

"Sara!" she exclaimed, "Barry's back!"

Sara jumped up and quickly switched the light on.

Her movement startled Avery, whose eyes cracked open.

"Mommy?" she asked groggily, her voice filled with tired confusion.

"C'mere," Sara said, and lifted the half-asleep Avery into her arms. They left the bedroom and hurried towards the stairs.

"What time is it?" she asked Lisa.

"A little past one in the morning," she replied.

Sara followed her up the stairs, the movement waking up Avery even more. Halfway up the staircase, she squirmed out of Sara's grip. She put her down, letting her climb up at a much slower rate behind them.

Sara went out the front door and onto the porch, where she grabbed tightly onto the railing and looked out into the darkness. She could see the faint outline of Barry's car a couple hundred feet away from them, but nothing else.

A few seconds later — although it felt like much longer than that — Barry became visible. He was covered in dust and dirt, and on his face was a spattering of small cuts that were dripping blood down his cheeks. There was exhaustion behind his eyes and in the way he moved, as if whatever was happening in Central City had sapped all the energy out of him.

Then, there was more movement behind him and another man came into view.

"Len!" Sara and Lisa said at the same time. Lisa went down the porch steps two at a time and ran to hug her brother.

"We watched you almost die," she told him when she stepped away, "All those drones flying around Central City caught you trying to save that kid and both of you almost getting squashed by a building."

"I'm fine," he said simply. It was clear in his voice he was almost as tired as Barry was.

His eyes met Sara's and he could see relief etched across her face. He started walking to where she was standing on the porch.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay," Sara nodded.

"No, it isn't," he insisted, "I shouldn't have just left like that."

"It's really—"

Leonard cut her off mid-sentence by stepping towards her and crashing his lips against hers. At once, the world fell away and it was just the two of them, standing alone on the wooden porch. Sara wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him closer until there was no space between them. Leonard tangled his fingers in her hair, letting one hand trail down her spine.

Only when she was out of air did she pull away.

"You can make it up to me later," she murmured against his lips.

"Let me start now," he said, "While we were in Central City, I got this this."

He stepped back and reached into his jacket. From an inside pocket, he pulled out Avery's bunny. Avery shrieked with glee and grabbed it from him.

"Thank you Lenny!" she said, hugging her blanket.

"You're perfect," Sara said fondly, kissing him again.

"Well, I don't know about that," Leonard replied.

"No Len, really, you are," she said. She kissed him one more time for good measure, and for the first time in a very long while, she felt like things were going to be okay.


	14. Chapter 14

**I'm baaaaaack! Finally. I didn't mean for it to take this long, but I've been crazy busy. I forgot to say this on the last chapter, but thank you all SO much for the Best WIP nomination. Idk if the award has been announced yet or not, but I'm so honored and grateful for the support. It means so, so much to me. Thank you!**

* * *

Life continued after the Markov device went off. The day after the earthquakes destroyed half the city — the half containing the Markov device they hadn't been able to disarm — restoration projects immediately began.

The team at S.T.A.R. Labs — including Sara and Avery — were still at Leonard's safe house in the mountains of Central City, waiting until it was safe enough to return.

"Iris," Barry called from the kitchen a few days after the Markov device went off, "Turn the news on."

Iris switched the TV from a primetime comedy show to the news channel, which was showing a shaky video of Malcolm Merlyn being led handcuffed by several cops through a throng of reporters and cameramen up to the police precinct. The day of the earthquake, Merlyn was caught by the Star City police at the train station. They had been alerted to what he had done and were waiting when he arrived.

"We've seen this a hundred times, Barry," Iris replied.

She was right. News of what had happened in Central City was being reported on nearly every channel, and once it was rumored that Merlyn was the one responsible for it, his face was dragged along with it.

"I read online that Tommy Merlyn's finally gonna make a statement about what happened," Barry explained.

"About time," Sara said as she entered the room carrying Avery, "How many days has it been? Two? Three?"

Avery angrily rubbed her eyes with her fist. She had just woken from a long nap and was clearly not happy about it.

"Daily bubble," she grumpily chanted, "Daily bubble, daily bubble."

"In a second, Avery," Sara replied, sitting her on a barstool at the counter and moving to stand behind the couch, "Mommy's just gotta watch something important right now."

Not too long after, the news reporter announced Tommy's press conference and the screen switched to Tommy Merlyn standing at a podium in the lobby of the Merlyn Global Group headquarters.

He looked much more professional than Sara was used to, having ditched his usual henley t-shirt and jeans for a slick black suit and tie.

"Hello," he said, looking into the camera, "I'm Tommy Merlyn and I'm here to address the actions of my father, Malcolm Merlyn, CEO of Merlyn Global Group. We all know of the terror that has happened in Central City. I would like to come forth and admit that the rumors are true. My father is the perpetrator."

He paused for a moment, waiting for the buzz from the reporters to die down.

"We are still currently undergoing investigations, but we suspect that this was planned several months to a year in advance and involved at least one accomplice, including an engineer who designed the machine that caused the earthquakes. He called it a Markov device, and we found the remains of one on the east side of Central City, which caused the damage. Members of the CCPD also found a disabled Markov device in a highway service tunnel on the west side of the city. We owe a lot of gratitude to the anonymous heroes who shut off that machine."

"Way to go, Sara," Iris said, giving her a high-five.

"I think I should put 'anonymous hero' on my resume now," Sara joked.

"I just want to make one thing very clear," Tommy continued, "This was an act of terror. This was a premeditated terrorist attack committed by my father in the hopes that you all — the citizens of Central City — would be scared into compliance —"

"Daily bubble," Avery whined.

" _One second_ ," Sara mouthed to her, " _Please_."

"— This does not reflect the overall views of Merlyn Global Group, and to help make up for my father's actions, we would like to donate our money and our time to restore your city. We will do whatever it takes to make up for what was lost on that night."

Tommy nodded once and then the news reporter returned, already introducing the next segment.

They were all silent for a moment.

"Well," Harry finally said, "That went better than I expected."

"Do you really think he's gonna follow through?" Cisco asked, "Do you think he'll actually get the company to pay to fix what Merlyn did?"

"Sara, he's your brother-in-law," Caitlin said, "What d'you think?"

"Tommy's definitely not the brightest guy I know, but I _do_ know that once he starts something, he refuses to give up until he succeeds — it's probably how he ended up marrying my sister —"

"It's time for the daily bubble _now_!" Avery shouted, her eyes wide. Several of the people in the room looked over to her in surprise at her sudden outburst.

" _Alright_ ," Sara said, running a hand through her hair in frustration, "My darling child, we'll do the daily bubble. Let's go."

"No, I want Lenny to do it."

Sara raised one eyebrow.

" _I_ invented the daily bubble. Lenny stole that from _me_ ," she said. Avery put one hand on her hip and fixed her mother with the sassiest expression she could muster, "He did, and anyway, you're outta luck. You know Lenny and Lisa are at the grocery store."

Avery hopped off her stool and started running towards the stairs.

"I'm gonna go wait for them," she called over her shoulder as she grabbed the railing and started to climb up the staircase.

"Of course you are," Sara muttered under her breath. She collapsed on the couch next to Iris, sighing heavily.

"You good?" Iris asked.

"Yeah," she replied, "I'm fine. I know she's only acting out because she's bored. She wants to go home. Otherwise she wouldn't be acting like this."

"And think of the alternative," Iris reminded her, "Think of how much harder your life would be if she didn't like Leonard."

"That's true," Jesse said from the kitchen, "Apparently when my dad started dating again, I was kind of a terror."

"Terror doesn't even start to cover it," Harry replied, "You used quantum physics to explain why I shouldn't have been dating that woman."

"That's not _that_ bad," Jesse waved her hand flippantly.

"Then you set her dress on fire," he finished.

"She wasn't wearing it."

"I really don't think that makes it any better."

"Yeah," Sara agreed with Iris," That's true. She could be taking this whole me-dating-Len thing totally differently. I guess that's what's throwing me off. I'm just waiting for the day she gets all mad at me for being with him — like what you did to your dad, Jesse."

"Hang on," Wells cut in, "These are two very different situations. There's a chance I should have trusted my daughter's intuition slightly more than I did at the time because those women I dated ended up being awful. I wasn't happy while I was dating them and they were wrong for me. You, on the other hand, are clearly very happy and in love with Snart, and Avery senses that. As someone who's been through a similar set of circumstances, let me just say that you've got nothing to worry about."

"She's also four years old," Joe added, "Iris, you don't even remember how awful you were when you were four."

"No, I don't," Iris laughed.

"Convenient," he replied, "If you remembered all embarrassing things you said in front of all my cop buddies, you'd give me a lot more than a card at Father's Day."

"C'mon dad. I wasn't that bad," Iris rolled her eyes.

"Oh, you were," he said pointedly, "but you grew out of it." Joe turned back to Sara. "Kids go through different phases all the time. This is one of them, and soon she'll grow out of it and you'll have a whole different thing to stress out about. Trust me."

Sara nodded, feeling decidedly reassured.

* * *

A few minutes later, Leonard and Lisa returned to the cabin from getting groceries.

"Lenny!" Avery screeched, running down the porch steps to greet him.

"Hey kiddo," he said, swinging her into his arms, "Did you have a good nap?"

"Uh-huh," she nodded, pushing her wild curls away from her eyes, "Can we do the daily bubble?"

"Sure," he nodded, putting her back on the ground.

"Lisa!" Avery called over her shoulder as she pulled Leonard up the porch steps, "Come watch!"

Lisa dropped the grocery bags she'd been carrying back into the trunk of the car and followed them up the porch steps.

The daily bubble wand and container were on a wicker side table on the wooden deck. Leonard picked up the pink wand out of the plastic container. Lisa lifted Avery up so she was sitting on her arms.

"Ready?" Leonard asked, standing at the bottom of the steps.

"Yeah!" Avery nodded vigorously.

"One…" They started counting when the bubble was in the air.

"Two…"

"Three…"

The bubble hit a flowering tree and popped right before they could say four.

"Another one," Avery requested.

"Only one a day or it's not special," Leonard answered, dropping the bubble wand back on the wicker table, "Where's your mom?"

"She's inside," Avery answered. "Uncle Tommy was on TV and everyone was watching him."

"Do you remember what he said?" he asked, knowing full well that he'd probably be asking Sara the same thing.

"Um," she looked to the sky and furrowed her eyebrows in thought, "Oh yeah, he said that it was Uncle Malcolm's fault that the city blew up and that his company is gonna fix everything for us."

"Okay," he replied. He did have a few follow-up questions, but for the most part, he was pretty impressed by Avery' comprehension of Tommy Merlyn's message. In fact, he was impressed by Avery's comprehension of _everything_ that had happened over the past few days. He'd had to keep reminding himself that even four-year-olds were capable of understanding things like this.

"Come help me with the groceries," he said, "Then we can go see your mom."

He gave her the two lightest bags and a carton of milk and followed her into the house.

"Mommy!" Avery called from the top floor, "Lenny and Lisa are back!"

"Did you do the daily bubble?" Sara asked. She turned in her seat and watched Avery carefully nod as she made her slow descent down the stairs, "How many seconds did you get?"

"Three," she answered.

"Well then, maybe you shoulda had me do it instead," Sara said pointedly.

"That sounds like excellent parenting," she heard Leonard comment from the floor above.

"That's what I was going for," she called back.

He appeared at the top of the stairs, laden with grocery bags.

"There's the sarcasm I know and love," he said sardonically. She matched his smirk in return.

He moved all the groceries to the kitchen and then sat on the couch next to Sara, draping an arm across her shoulders.

"I heard Tommy was on the news," he said. Sara nodded, "Say anything interesting?"

"Well, it seems like Merlyn Global Group will be completely paying for damages, no questions asked," she answered, "The news is saying that restoration projects will be starting as early as tomorrow. They're asking for volunteers. We should go help out."

"Yeah, we should," he agreed.

* * *

So that's exactly what they did. The next day, bright and early, they all headed down to Central City to help fix what had been damaged the night the Markov device went off.

They helped clean up debris around the city and organized materials to rebuild things that had been broken. Even Avery helped plant new flowers in parks whose plants had been uprooted.

The long days of work proved to be too much for Avery, who still couldn't even go a whole day without a nap, never mind a whole day of strenuous work. They all continued to help out in the weeks that followed, but most of the time, they went down in groups, a few people going to Central City and the rest staying with Avery at the safe house.

One day, a little over a month after the Markov Device went off. The whole group was going to head down to the city again.

"I don't wanna go!" Avery said.

"Ave, we don't have time for this. Everyone's waiting," Sara said, "Let's go."

"It's gonna rain!"

"I checked the weather three times, Avery. I promise it's not gonna rain."

"I don't wanna go," she repeated.

"Avery," Sara groaned, looking up at the ceiling.

"I can stay here with her," Leonard volunteered.

"You don't have to," Sara replied.

"No, I don't mind," he shook his head, "Besides, I think it's gonna rain too."

" _See_!" Avery exclaimed.

Leonard smirked at Sara's exasperated expression.

"You're just egging her on," she told him.

"Lenny said he'd stay so I can stay too, right?" Avery asked.

"I guess," Sara gave in, "But you better be so good for him while I'm gone. He'll tell me if you aren't."

She bent down and scooped Avery up, kissing her cheek.

"Are you gonna be back for movie night?" Avery asked, playing with strands of her mother's hair.

"I'm gonna try so hard to be back in time but if I'm not, you can watch with Len and we'll have our own special movie night tomorrow," Sara replied. Avery nodded.

She set her back on the ground and looked to Leonard

"Thanks for doing this," she said gratefully, "We shouldn't be back too late."

"Unless it rains," he smirked.

"Unless it rains," she repeated, rolling her eyes.

She stood on her toes and kissed him.

"Be careful out there," he murmured against her lips.

"You don't have to worry about me."

"I know I don't," he replied, "But I do anyway."

She stepped away from Leonard and gave Avery one last kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks again for doing this," she told him, smoothing a hand over Avery's hair.

"Don't worry about it," he said, "I don't mind."

He was actually grateful for the reason to stay. He'd been searching for a time to be alone with Avery for a while now, but with all the people who were living in the cabin at one time, an opportunity had never presented itself. Now he'd get his chance.

Sara and the others left a few minutes later.

"What do you want to do?" Leonard asked Avery after they'd watched the cars drive away.

"Can we go down to the beach?" she asked.

"Yeah, go get a swimsuit on," he replied, nodding.

They went back inside the house and he sat on the couch and waited as she went into her room and changed. She returned a few moments later in a floral swimsuit with pink ruffles. One strap was dangling off her arm and the other had been pulled over her head.

"I don't think it did it right," she said.

"You're so close," he said as he fixed the straps so they formed an X-shaped cross in the back.

"Can you put my hair up?" she asked, handing him a blue hair tie and a brush. He took them and she turned around.

As he ran the brush through her hair, she leaned against his legs, her hands absently tapping on his knees.

Leonard wasn't too bad at fixing hair. He'd done Lisa's hair when they were much younger, but the last time he'd done that must have been at least twenty years ago, and anyway, her hair hadn't been nearly as curly as Avery's, but he did manage to get her hair brushed and into a decent bun pretty quickly.

"Let's go!" Avery said urgently.

"Alright, alright," Leonard replied, getting to his feet.

They went back inside and walked a couple minutes down the road until they reached a staircase that led to the little beach down below.

"Be careful on the stairs, Ave," Leonard said, holding tightly onto her hand as they walked down the narrow wooden steps.

Once they were down, Avery kicked off her sandals and started wading in the teal-colored water.

"Not too deep," Leonard reminded her. He was standing ankle deep in the cool bay with his black jeans rolled up.

He watched her paddle in the shallow water for a few minutes before getting to why he'd wanted to spend time with Avery in the first place.

"So Avery," he began, feeling a nervousness in his chest he'd never felt before, "You know I'm dating your mom, right?"

"Mmm-hmm," she said, looking up at him to nod before turning back to the water.

"And you're okay with that?"

"Yeah," she said, "Mommy's so happy now. Ooh, _look_ — fishes!"

Avery started to follow a little fish through the water.

"Okay, so you're okay with me dating your mom," he continued, "Would you be okay if I married your mom? I know we haven't been together long and it's all been so fast but—"

"I'd be _super_ okay with that!" Avery screeched, flinging water into the air in excitement.

"You would?" Leonard replied, feeling as if a weight had been lifted off of his chest.

"Yeah!" she exclaimed, "But only if I'm invited to the wedding, 'cos when Auntie Laurel got married, she didn't invite me."

"I don't think you were born yet," Leonard told her, thinking back to conversations he'd had with Sara, "But I promise you will be invited."

"Yay!" Avery said happily, hopping around in the water and creating circular ripples around her.

She straightened up and met Leonard's eyes.

"I have a question," she said.

"Shoot."

"If mommy is my mommy and if you marry her, does that make you my daddy?"

"They call that a stepfather," he told her.

"But could I call you daddy?"

Leonard didn't immediately respond. The answer that immediately came to mind was yes, he did want her to call him dad, but he also knew that this wasn't entirely his choice.

"I think you should talk to your mom about that," he finally said, "But not yet. You can't tell her any of what we talked about. It won't be special if it isn't a surprise."

"Okay," she nodded.

"Promise?"

"Promise," she repeated seriously.

* * *

They stayed by the lake for a little while before they headed back to the cabin. By the time they returned and Avery changed into dry clothes, it was time for lunch.

When they sat down to eat, Avery began asking question after question about Leonard marrying her mom.

"Are you gonna live with us after you get married?"

"Yeah."

"What about before?"

"Maybe. We're living together now, aren't we."

"Kinda. It doesn't really count. Will we live in your apartment or mine?"

"I don't know yet."

"Can my stuffed animals come to the wedding?"

"Maybe just pick your favorite one."

"What about Lisa?"

"You're gonna need to be more specific."

"Is mommy gonna marry her too?"

"No, probably not."

"Who's Lisa gonna marry?"

"I don't know yet."

"Do you think Lisa's gonna marry Cisco?"

"I'd rather not think about it."

"Will Lisa move in with us too?"

"I don't think so."

That continued for a long time.

After Avery was done eating and Leonard was cleaning up the kitchen, he asked her a question of his own.

"Avery," he said, "Do you think your mom will say yes when I ask her to marry me?"

"Yeah!" Avery replied, "'Cause she loves you a whole lot. She told me so."

* * *

Around five o'clock, they heard thunder rumbling in the distance and saw flashes of lightning illuminating the sky.

"It's gonna rain," Avery said matter-of-factly as she ate her dinner of mac-and-cheese and dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets.

"I think you might be right," Leonard replied.

A few minutes later, his phone rang.

"Sara," he said when he picked up.

"Hey," she replied, "So there's a storm right over the city right now and it's holding all the projects up. I think we're gonna end up being a couple hours late."

"So it _did_ rain," Leonard smirked.

"I know," she groaned, "Ave's never gonna let me forget it. By the way, tell her I'm sorry for missing movie night, but I'll probably be back in time to put her to bed."

Avery was a little disappointed when he told her Sara would be late, but she bounced back quickly.

"That means I get two movie nights instead of one," she said gleefully.

Thunder rolled over the sky. Leonard looked out the window to see a deep green sky with black clouds in the distance. The rain in Central City was headed for them.

"Avery, let's go on the porch," he said. He took her hand and led her upstairs to the back deck, the one that overlooked the Central City Bay.

"Why?" Avery asked.

"We're gonna storm-watch," he replied, "Lisa and I did this when we were younger."

Truthfully, storm-watching was what Lisa and Leonard would do when they were hiding in a locked bathroom in their rundown childhood home. Their father was often even worse than usual during thunderstorms. He drank more, yelled louder, and hit harder, his actions masked by the noise of the storm. Leonard and Lisa would watch the storm makes its way across the sky from the tiny bathroom window as they waited for their father to either pass out on the couch or leave the house, making his way to the nearest bar he could find.

But Avery didn't need those details.

She climbed up onto the couch and sat cross-legged on the cushions, Leonard sitting beside her.

Avery watched the storm with tentative fascination. She laughed with glee when the rain began, first just a drizzle, but quickly becoming a downpour.

"I told Mommy it would rain!" she said, "I told her!"

Her eyes lit up with every bolt of lightning, but she jumped every time it thundered, the low rumbles becoming booming crashes. Soon, she had climbed into his lap, holding his hands so his arms wrapped around her middle, and playing with his fingers.

When the storm was right overhead and wind started to blow rain onto the porch, they went inside.

"Ready to watch a movie?" Leonard asked, sitting on the couch.

"Yeah," Avery said, climbing up next to him and sticking her thumb in her mouth, "Can we watch Tinkerbell again?"

"Didn't you watch Tinkerbell yesterday?" he reminded her, "Don't you want to watch something new?"

"But I dunno what to watch," she replied.

Leonard thought for a moment.

"Have you ever heard of Narnia?" he asked. She shook her head, "It's a book series that I read to Lisa when we were kids — I think I might have some of the books here, actually. Anyway, they made some into movies and they're pretty good."

"Okay," Avery agreed.

* * *

Sara and the others returned to the cabin a few minutes after the movie ended. Leonard was leaning back on the couch with Avery on his chest. The end credits of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe were still rolling across the screen.

"I told you it would rain!" Avery screeched when they all walked downstairs, drenched from the storm outside, "I told you!"

"Yes, Avery, you were right," Sara said, brushing strands of damp hair out of her eyes, "I should have listened to you."

"Do you want to show your mom what we worked on today?" Leonard asked her. He turned to Sara, "I taught her a knock-knock joke."

"It's really funny!" Avery piped up, "Mommy, knock-knock — who's there?"

"Wait no," Leonard interrupted, laughing, "You just say knock-knock. She says who's there."

"Oh yeah," she said, "Mommy, knock-knock."

"Who's there?" Sara asked dutifully.

"Canoe."

"Canoe who?"

"Do you wanna play with my canoe?"

Sara furrowed her eyebrows as Leonard burst out laughing.

"Avie, no, that's not the punchline," he said. He leaned over and whispered something in her ear. Avery giggled and and turned back to her mother.

"Knock-knock," she began the joke again.

"Who's there?" Sara repeated.

"Canoe."

"Canoe who?"

"Canoe play with me?"

Sara laughed at the cheesy joke.

"That's a good one," she said, "I take it you had fun with Lenny. Were you good?"

"Yeah," Avery giggled, smiling angelically. She rolled over so she was splayed across Leonard's chest, her arms wrapped around his neck.

"Why don't you go get your pajamas on and get ready for bed. I'll go in soon to read you some bedtime stories."

Avery nodded and climbed off of Leonard, running to her room.

"So," Sara said, dropping onto the couch next to Leonard as he sat up, "How was she _really_?"

"She was good," he replied truthfully, "She even napped for a while."

"Wow," Sara said, impressed, "How'd you make that happen?"

"We went down to the beach for a while. I think that might have drained some energy out of her," he replied, "How's Central City? Is everything coming together?"

"For the most part. We had to call Tommy in because some builder wanted to put the Merlyn Global Group logo on something they were rebuilding, which is exactly what Malcolm wanted."

"She screamed at him," Lisa commented as she walked into the kitchen, "He looked terrified. We were all thoroughly entertained."

"Tommy took care of it," Sara finished.

"So he's following through on his promise?" Leonard asked.

"Looks like it," she replied, "Joe said we can go back home soon. Our side of the city hasn't needed a lot of construction. Oh, I forgot to mention, Merlyn escaped."

"What?"

"Yeah, apparently he broke out of prison last night, but the cops caught him this afternoon on a bus to Coast City of all places."

"I'm sure he thought he deserved a break after all the hard work he put in destroying half a city," he said sarcastically.

"Yeah, well he's in a maximum security cell now and they're considering not even bringing him to trial."

"Can they do that?" he asked skeptically.

"I dunno, but I'm not complaining."

"Mommy!" Avery ran into the room, now in a pair of pajamas and carrying her bunny blanket, "I'm ready for bed."

"Did you brush your teeth?"

"Yeah."

Sara narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"You weren't gone for very long. Are you sure?"

Avery started to giggle.

"Avery has a tell," Sara told Leonard, "Ave, do you know what a tell is?"

"No," Avery shook her head.

"It means that when you're saying something that isn't true, we can _tell_ because you always giggle."

Sara tickled Avery until she shrieked with laughter. She picked her up and got to her feet.

"Time for bed," she said, "Say goodnight to Len."

"Goodnight Lenny!"

"G'night Avery."

* * *

After Sara had properly brushed Avery's teeth and gotten her ready to go to sleep, they climbed into her bed, Sara with several bedtime stories in one hand. Just as she cracked one open, Avery started to speak.

"Mommy?" she asked, "Do you think you'll marry Lenny?"

"Marry him?" Sara exclaimed, looking at her daughter in surprise, "Where's this coming from?"

"I dunno," she shook her head, "Would you?"

"Would I marry Len?" Sara asked. Avery nodded, "Well, he'd have to ask me first."

"But if he did ask you and you said yes and you married him, would he be my dad?"

"Well, he'd be your stepdad," Sara corrected her.

"I _know_!" Avery raised her voice in frustration. Sara raised her eyebrows at her outburst, "But would I call him dad?"

" _Oh_ ," Sara said. Now she understood, "Are you a little confused about what's happening?"

As Avery nodded, she scrunched up her face to hide the new tears in her eyes.

"Oh honey, you don't need to cry," she said, putting the book down and pulling Avery into her arms, "It's okay to be confused. What are you confused about?"

Avery buried her face in Sara's shoulder, the fabric muffling her voice.

"I wanna call him daddy, but you don't call Grandma Donna your mom even though she's your step mom," she said.

"That's because they got married when I was a lot older than you. I was so old that you were even at the wedding."

"I was?"

"Yeah. You were only one then, so you don't remember, but you were there. I also already had a mom my whole life: Grandma Dinah. I didn't need another one. Plus, Grandma Donna already has a daughter that calls her mom."

"Auntie Lissy," Avery said.

"That's right, she's Aunt Felicity's mom," she nodded, "But you only have a mommy, so if Lenny's okay with it, you could call him dad because you don't have a dad yet."

Avery nodded.

"But," she continued, "That means sitting down and talking with Lenny about it, so if he doesn't want you to call him dad, that has to be okay, because it's his choice too."

"And if he does, then I can?"

"Well, you'd have to wait until we get married — _if_ we get married, but yes, it would be okay. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah," Avery replied.

"And if you're ever confused about anything, you can always talk to me, okay?"

"Okay."

"I love you so much, Avie."

"I love you too."

With that, Avery fell back onto her pillow, ready for her bedtime stories.

* * *

 **I'm currently upholding a no-schedule policy with this story, so whenever I finish a chapter, I'm publishing it. That means that the next chapter could come in three days or three weeks but just know that I'm always working on this story; my schedule is just iNSANE right now, but I am always working :)**


	15. Chapter 15

**I'm back! It feels like it's been almost two months since I last posted something because it has. Oops. Anyway, I've returned with another chapter!**

* * *

Sara returned to the living room nearly an hour after she'd left with Avery.

"My child conned me into falling asleep with her again," Sara said, brushing her tousled hair out of her eyes.

She sat next to Leonard on the couch, resting her legs across his and wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Anyway," she continued, "Avery asked me something I didn't exactly expect."

"And what might that've been?"

"Well, first she wanted to know if we were gonna get married."

"And?" Leonard smirked.

"I told her you'd have to ask me first," she teased. Leonard rolled his eyes.

"But what she really wanted to ask me was if she would be able to call you dad."

"Really?"

"Mmm-hmm," Sara nodded, "I said she should ask you at some point and that the three of us would all sit down and talk about it, but I'd like to hear your two cents first."

Leonard was quiet, with a look of consideration on his face.

Sara had learned through the past few weeks that Leonard let her take control of their relationship when things were new. Sara had kissed him first, Sara initiated PDA around the cabin, Sara had first started the discussion about getting married a few days ago. She knew that Leonard wanted to experience these new milestones, he just didn't know how, so he let Sara take the reins.

He wanted to have this discussion about Avery calling him Dad, but Sara knew that he needed her to get it started.

"Look," she said, "I know this is a conversation you never imagined having, and I understand why you'd be weirded out by it, but just so you know, I'd be okay with Ave calling you Dad if you are."

"I'm not uncomfortable about it," he said, "But I'm not actually her dad. What'll happen if her actual dad shows up one day."

"I'll tell him you were here first," Sara replied, "Because you were."

"I just feel like I might not deserve the title," he said, and Sara could see the uncertainty on his face, "You were there for her first steps and first words and first day of school. I've been here for, what, two months?"

"First of all, it's definitely been longer than that. Second of all, she's only four. There'll be more firsts. You helped her with her first school project and you heard her first swear word," she tipped her head to the side in consideration, "You rescued her from her first attempted kidnapping."

She chuckled and Leonard even managed a smile.

"And yes," she continued, "I was there for her first steps and her first words and all those other firsts because I'm doing my job as her mom, and she's had me her whole life. Her dad didn't even both sticking around until she was born. That was a choice _he_ chose to make, but his selfishness doesn't mean that Avery never gets to have a father. Clearly she thinks you're up for the job. And so do I."

Leonard nodded, looking deep into her turquoise eyes.

"But," she said, leaning away from him and stretching her legs out in front of her, "Don't let me lead you in one particular direction. You get to make up your own mind."

"Are you two done yet?" Cisco asked, striding into the room with a bowl of popcorn in one hand, "Game of Thrones is on in five minutes and it won't be any fun if you're being all couple-y in the background."

"Yes, we're done," Leonard rolled his eyes, "Put on your show, Ramon."

* * *

They all sat and watched Game of Thrones together, and when it was over, they all gradually traipsed off to bed until Leonard and Sara were the only ones left in the room.

"Did you hear Lisa and Cisco decided to move in together?" Sara asked him.

"Yes," Leonard rolled his eyes, but the irritation on his face didn't last long. He was happy for his sister, even if he didn't always show it, "She's gonna start moving out when we go back to Central City."

"You know, she doesn't have to be the only one."

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe," Sara said, "When we get back, you could move in with Ave and me."

"Really?"

"Yeah, why not?" she replied, "I mean, we're already pretty much living together now."

"Do you think Avery would be okay with it?"

"I'm pretty sure you could literally kidnap Avery and she'd be okay with it," she joked. They heard the sound of a bedroom door open, "Speak of the devil."

They heard the sound of little feet padding against the hardwood floors.

"Woah!" Sara said, "What are you doing up?"

Leonard turned in his seat to see Avery running into the room.

"I woke up!" she said, smiling innocently.

"I see that," Sara replied, "but you have to go back to bed. It's way too late for you to be up."

" _You're_ up," Avery said, climbing into Sara's lap.

"Yes, but I wasn't awake at five in the morning."

"Yeah you were 'cos I woke you up."

"I wasn't awake by choice," Sara corrected, "C'mon, you have to go back to bed."

"I tried," Avery whined, rolling over so she was hanging over the side of the couch, "I can't sleep."

"Hey Ave," Leonard said, leaning over to pick something up off the side table next to him, "After you went to bed, I looked through my bookshelves and i found this."

He held up a thin hardcover book. Avery looked at the cover.

"I can't read," she said.

"I know," he replied, "It's _The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe_."

Avery's face brightened.

"That's the movie we watched today!"

"I know," he said again.

"Mommy!" Avery said, pulling on Sara's hand, "Can Lenny read the Narnia book to me? I _promise_ I'll really go to sleep this time."

"Lenny can if he wants to," Sara replied, "But I'm going to bed."

She planted a kiss on Leonard's lips and another on the top of Avery's head and stood from the couch.

"Goodnight," she called over her shoulder as she headed towards her and Leonard's bedroom,

"G'night Mommy," Avery said.

Leonard stood from the couch and picked up Avery.

"Let's go," he said, "One chapter and then you have to go to bed."

Avery nodded, resting her cheek on his shoulder.

He carried her to her bedroom and set her down on the bed. He sat next to her and opened the book to the first chapter.

"Wait!" she screeched and began fishing through her quilt and sheets.

"What?"

"I need my bunny," she replied.

"Oh," he nodded understandingly and waited patiently until she found her bunny.

"Okay," she said, once she'd extracted her bunny from a fold in the sheets, "I'm ready now."

He cracked open the book and started to read.

* * *

Leonard read Avery the first chapter of _The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe_ , and when he was done, he closed the book and set it on the nightstand.

"So what'd you think?" he asked Avery.

"It's good," she replied.

"Lisa liked it," he told her, "I think she was your age when I read this to her."

"Can we read more?" Avery asked.

"Tomorrow," he replied, "Right now you have to go to sleep."

He moved to get out of the bed, but Avery stopped him.

"Can I ask you somethin'?" she asked.

"Yeah," Leonard replied, sitting back down.

"How come you talk about taking care of Lisa lots?" she asked, "How come you took care of her?"

"Well," he said slowly, "When I was growing up, I didn't exactly have a mom like you do."

"Like how I don't have a dad?"

"Right," he nodded. That wasn't exactly the whole story, but Avery didn't need the whole story. Not yet, anyway, "My mom wasn't around, so my dad was the one who had to take care of me and Lisa, but the thing is, my dad didn't really want to be a dad. He thought it was too hard and he wasn't very good at it, so he stopped trying. Someone still had to take care of Lisa — she was about your age then — and I was around so I decided I would."

"Oh," Avery replied, "Okay." Then she added, "My mommy's a good mommy, right?"

"Your mommy is the best mommy I've ever seen," he answered, "Anything you need and she'll be there. She'll always be there for you." He hesitated a moment and then added, "And so will I."

Avery nodded.

"But now," Leonard stood from the bed, " _I_ need _you_ to go to sleep."

He leaned down to pull the quilt up over Avery's legs and as he did, Avery sat up and wrapped her arms around Leonard in the tightest hug her tiny body could muster. Leonard pulled Avery closer to him, kissing the top of her head.

"I mean it," he said when she released him, "If you ever need anything, I'll always be here. I promise."

* * *

The next few days were spent packing up the cabin. They had all definitely settled into the house in the few weeks they'd lived there, and it took a lot longer to move back out than they'd expected.

It took a while, but three days after Leonard and Avery had read the first chapter of _The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe_ , they were packed up and ready to head back to the city.

Most of the cabin's temporary inhabitants were happy to be returning to their normal lives, all except one.

Avery had been having a particularly rough time with leaving the cabin, and the day they finally left was the worst of them all.

It hadn't been a good morning to begin with. First, there had been something cataclysmically wrong with one of Avery's socks that couldn't be fixed with any amount of adjusting. Then she couldn't find a very specific little plastic doll with a very specific purple dress that she needed right at that very minute. By that point, she was dangerously close to a meltdown that Sara _really_ didn't want to have to deal with.

"I don't wanna go," Avery said adamantly, her sneakers lighting up as they stomped against the deck floor.

"Avery," Sara said patiently, looking up at Avery on the wooden front porch from her spot on the driveway, "Lenny is waiting in the car for us. Let's go."

"I don't wanna go!" she repeated.

"Don't you wanna see your friends again?" Sara asked, aware that she was grasping at straws at this point, "When we get back, we can call Natalie and Seth and see if they wanna play."

"No, I wanna stay here," Avery shook her head.

"I'm sorry to tell you, babe, but you're gonna be the only one here," she told her, "Everyone else went home."

"Nuh-uh."

"Yep," she told her, "We're the only ones still here. C'mon, get in the car."

Avery pouted up at her mother until Sara, tired of arguing, strode up the porch stairs and scooped her up. She squirmed frantically in her arms, but to no avail because in less than a minute, she was strapped into her carseat.

"I'm very upset, Mommy," Avery said, crossing her arms over the buckles of her seat.

"I know," Sara said understandingly, "I think you'll be okay, though."

* * *

They made it back home in just under an hour.

"We're home!" Avery exclaimed once they were all out of the car.

"I thought you didn't want to come home," Sara said skeptically.

"All my toys are here," she responded as if it was obvious.

"Okay," Sara replied, shrugging in defeat.

"Never a dull moment?" Leonard commented, smirking at Sara as he walked around the car.

"No kidding," she said, watching her daughter scramble up the stone steps of the apartment building. She turned to face Leonard, "You ready for this?" she asked him, "You ready to move in?"

"Yes," he nodded, and then added, "Especially considering my other option is living with Cisco Ramon."

"I can't believe he'll be living across the hall," she laughed, intertwining her fingers with his as they walked into the apartment together, Avery running a few feet ahead of them.

* * *

"Mommy?" Avery said one morning, a few days after Leonard had finished moving in. She was sitting in a leather arm chair that had made its way into the living room from Leonard's apartment at some point during the last week.

"Yes, Avery," Sara replied.

"Where'd this chair come from?" she asked.

"That's Lenny's chair," she answered.

"How come Lenny's chair is here?"

"You remember what I said about how Len is gonna live with us, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, he brought some of his own stuff with him, like his clothes and some of his furniture."

"Why?"

"Because now it's part his house too," she explained, "Is that okay?"

"Yeah!" Avery exclaimed, her eyes shining, "I love him here so much 'cos yesterday he made me a grilled cheese shaped like a cat and it tasted so good!"

Sara was so grateful that Avery was taking everything so well. She knew her life would be a hell of a lot harder if Avery was unhappy, but she was taking everything better than Sara could have anticipated.

She wished everyone in her life would be as supportive. Her father had called her the night before to check in and Sara had decided to rip off the bandage and tell him about Leonard.

He had, unsurprisingly, not been pleased and the argument that had ensued ended with Sara shouting, " _Oh my God, Dad, I don't need you to vet the people I date!"_ and then hanging up the phone.

The front door opened and Avery, Leonard, and a little pink bike with shiny training wheels entered the apartment.

"I take it that didn't go well," Leonard said.

"You heard that?" Sara cringed.

"Yeah, we could hear you all the way down the hallway!" Avery chirped.

"Great," Sara sighed. She put her phone down on the coffee table and attempted to maintain her composure.

"Lenny, let's go!" Avery called behind her as she ran into her bedroom.

"Just a second," he told her, sitting on the couch next to Sara.

"So how did the bike-riding go?" she asked.

"She did a good job," Leonard nodded, "She still won't let me let go of the handle bars, but she didn't scream when I tried this time."

"Progress," Sara said, pumping her fist in the air.

Her phone vibrated loudly against the glass table. Sara turned it over to see that Laurel was calling her.

"If my dad tattled on me to my sister, I'm gonna flip a —" she glanced at Avery to make sure she wasn't paying attention before mouthing "— _shit_."

"You should answer her," Leonard advised her.

"Lenny!" Avery called again from her bedroom.

"What does she want?" Sara asked, glancing over her shoulder to Avery's bedroom.

"I said I'd read more of the Narnia book to her, but I can stay here with you while you talk to your sister if you want."

"No, it's okay," Sara waved him off, "Go read to Avie."

He nodded and said, "Good luck with Laurel," placing a comforting hand on her shoulder before heading into Avery's bedroom.

That had been two days ago and in the time since, her sister had come around. Her father was still a work in progress, but Sara was trying to not let it be a big deal. She was happy and that's all that mattered to her.

Well, almost.

There _was_ one person in Sara's life whose opinion mattered to her, and that person was coming to visit them for the first time since Sara moved.

"When's she gonna get here?" Avery asked urgently, kicking her little legs against the leather chair.

"A couple minutes, honey," Sara answered.

"Where's Lenny?" she asked.

"He's at the grocery store. He'll be back home soon too. Relax."

Avery had just woken up from a very long nap and now seemed to have an inexorable amount of energy.

She'd been tearing around the apartment in crazed circles until she crashed into a table and almost broke a lamp, at which point Sara sent her outside to run laps up and down the hallway. She grew bored of that after a while, so Sara encouraged her to play a game of her own invention called "See-How-Long-You-Can-Sit-In-That-Chair-Without-Getting-Up".

"When can I get up?" Avery asked.

"You could get up now, but that you mean you lose," she advised her, "But the game will end when she gets here."

"But _when's_ she gonna get here?"

"A few minutes, honey, like I said."

Sara went back into the kitchen, where she was putting the finishing touches on lunch — something her mother called a "crudité platter", but was really just a lot of small food on a big plate, plus a peanut butter sandwich, pretzels, and hummus for Avery.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door and Sara heard Avery launch herself out of the chair.

"Avery, ask who it is!" Sara called from the kitchen, but to no avail because Avery was already undoing the chain and tugging the door open.

"Aunt Lissy!" Avery screeched and Sara entered the living room just in time to see Avery throw herself into Felicity Smoak's arms.

"Avery!" Felicity explained, swinging her into her arms and whirling her through the air, "You're getting so big!"

"I'm two whole inches taller than three feet," she said matter-of-factly after Felicity put her down.

"Wow!" Felicity looked up and saw Sara walking towards her, "Sara!"

She crossed the distance between them and hugged her friend.

"Oh my God, you have no idea how much I missed you."

"I missed you too!" Sara replied.

Felicity stepped away from her and looked around the apartment.

"Your place is so nice!" she exclaimed, "You've done such a good job with it!" She pointed to the leather chair Avery had been sitting in, "Is that new?"

"Uh, in a sense," Sara responded nervously.

This was no regular visit with Felicity. Sara, after a long internal debate, had decided that she didn't want her best friend to hear about Leonard in a text or over the phone or — even worse — from Laurel of her dad, whose personal opinions Leonard could prematurely decide what Felicity thought of the man Sara loved. She'd taken it upon her self to invite Felicity to Central City for the weekend so she could meet Leonard in person.

"Why don't we sit?" Sara suggested, "I'll bring out food in a minute; I'm just waiting on a few things."

One of those things was Leonard himself. Like Sara had told Avery, Leonard was at the grocery store. She knew he'd be back in a few minutes, but the waiting was killing her.

Sara realized that Felicity's opinion of Leonard mattered to her more than both Laurel's and her father's.

Five years ago — back when she was still pregnant with Avery — Felicity was the only person in her life who had been by her side since day one. Even her mother had been a little disappointed in Sara at first. Sure, she'd come around relatively quickly, but still, Felicity was the only one supporting her from the beginning when no one else — not even her parents or her sister — did.

Felicity had actually sat in the waiting room the whole time Sara was in labor and was the first person to hold Avery after she was born.

She was Sara's best friend; her opinion mattered to her and Sara wasn't sure what she'd do if Felicity didn't like Leonard.

"So Avery," Felicity said, pulling Sara back into the living room where they were all sitting, "What's new with you now that you're so grown up? What's your favorite color?"

"Purple," Avery replied as Felicity lifted her into her lap.

"Awesome! How about…what's your favorite animal?"

"An elephant. I have ten in my room."

"You have ten elephants?" Felicity responded.

"Uh-huh," she nodded confidently.

"In your room?"

"Thirty!" Avery urgently corrected.

"Eighteen, thirty, same thing," Felicity shrugged, "You have thirty elephants in your room. Are they real?"

"Yup!"

"You have thirty real elephants in your room? That's awesome!"

"And now I'm gonna get three more and them I'm gonna have twenty-seven-hundred!"

"Well, that does not add up, but I'm happy for you," Felicity replied. She turned to Sara, "How've you been? How's work?"

"It's good," she shrugged, "I think the city's still pretty spooked after the earthquake incident."

"That's right!" Felicity exclaimed, "I forgot to ask: how are you guys after that — I mean, obviously you're okay; you're right here, but did you get out of the city okay? Did you find a place to stay? How was Avie after?"

"Ave's fine," Sara answered, ending Felicity's stream of questions, "And yeah, we had somewhere to stay — a place up in the mountains."

"Really?" Felicity asked skeptically, "That sounds kinda sketchy."

"No, it was fine," Sara reassured her, "It's—"

"It's Lenny's house," Avery interrupted, "and he hid it from us 'cos he didn't want a lotta people there."

"Who's Lenny?" Felicity asked, turning to Sara.

"Uh, well, he's—" Sara was cut off yet again as the door to the apartment opened and Leonard walked in with a plastic grocery bag in each hand.

"Felicity," Sara said, jumping off her chair and walking over to where Leonard was standing, "This is Leonard — my boyfriend."

* * *

 **It's important to note that this story was supposed to have eight chapter and now it's slated to have 18. Whoops.**

 **Also, I'm thinking (read: still very on the fence) about introducing Avery's biological dad into the story. Would you guys like for him to be a new character that I create or someone we've seen on Legends or Arrow? Let me know and keep in mind that I may ultimately decide to not include him at all.**


	16. Chapter 16

Felicity was silent for a moment, looking between Sara and Leonard with shock in her eyes.

"Your…boyfriend?" she finally asked.

"Just give me one second," Leonard told Sara, holding up the grocery bags he was still carrying, "Some of this stuff needs to get into the freezer."

He ducked into the kitchen and out of sight.

"I'm sorry," Sara urgently told Felicity, "I didn't mean to spring this on you like this, but I really wanted you to meet him in person. I love him so much and it's really important to me that you like him too."

"You _love_ him?" she asked skeptically. Sara nodded, "Wow, it's that serious? Does Avery like him too?"

"Avery is over the moon in love with him," Sara reassured her.

"Wow, well, I mean, alright, I'll meet the guy."

"Thank you!" Sara exclaimed, pulling her friend into a practically bone-crushing hug, "Thank you, Lis. I promise you'll love him — trust me, he's amazing."

Just then, Leonard returned to the living room.

"Len!" Sara said, "This is Felicity. Felicity, this is Leonard."

The two shook hands.

"I've heard so much about you in the last…thirty seconds," Felicity told him.

They all sat in the living room.

"So should I start with the usual probing best friend questions?" Felicity suggested.

Sara started to laugh, but she was cut off as Felicity asked, "So how did you meet Sara?"

"Oh god, she's actually doing this?" Sara said to no one in particular.

"I met Sara and Ave when they moved here," Leonard answered, "I lived with my sister across the hall."

"Yeah," Sara nodded, "and then we worked a pretty important job and ended up having to spend a load of time together."

"She's leaving out the part at the beginning where she actively worked against me for several months," Leonard informed her, "And the little detail of when she shot me."

"I remember that!" Avery's face brightened, "Lenny got blood all over the kitchen!"

"Okay," Sara said in exasperation, "Yes, I shot you once — in the _leg_ , and it was basically an accident. Plus, I stitched it up right after."

During this, Felicity had said nothing. In fact, none of their conversation seemed to have registered with her.

"Why do I recognize your voice?" she finally asked, regarding Leonard with a perplexed look on her face.

"Oh my God," Felicity exclaimed, "You're Captain Cold!"

"Who's Captain Cold?" Avery asked. Sara jumped to her feet.

"Okay, Ave, why don't you go play anywhere that isn't here?" she suggested, ushering Avery into her bedroom.

"He _is_ Captain Cold, isn't he!" Felicity exclaimed.

"How the hell did you know?" Sara asked after closing Avery's door.

"Do you remember, like, two years ago when I visited for a week."

"Yeah."

"I didn't visit just to see you. Barry called me in. I thought I'd be helping him with a meta-human, but instead I was helping him stop Captain Cold."

"You're the blonde who used Facebook to disable my cold gun!" Leonard said, just as Sara exclaimed, "Wait, so you knew Barry was the Flash and you didn't tell me?"

Both had looks of dismay on their faces.

"That's your takeaway, Sara?" Felicity said, furrowing her eyebrows, "And yes, that was me. I didn't _have_ to do it through Facebook. It's just more fun that way. Here's my question: the last time I heard about you, Cold, the Flash was trying to bring you down from whatever it was you were doing. Now, what, you're working with him?"

"Would you believe a change of heart?" he smirked.

"No," Felicity scoffed.

"Look," he said, leaning forwards in his seat, "When you saw me two years ago, I was a different person. I was new to the crime scene — as Captain Cold, anyway. Not too long after that I joined a group called the Legion of Doom."

"Legion of _Doom_? It's a little on the nose, don't you think?" Felicity interrupted, rolling her eyes, "I bet you ran this group."

"First of all, I'll take that as a compliment," he smirked, " And no, I didn't. There were four of us, and one was an immortal, one was a time traveling speedster, one was Malcolm Merlyn, and one was me. I'll let you guess the hierarchy. Anyway, one of us came up with a plan to level Central City and absorb its remains into his own company."

"Malcolm Merlyn?" Felicity confirmed. Leonard nodded curtly.

"The immortal and the time traveler didn't agree to help him with his plan — it was too rudimentary for them, and that's their words, not mine — but they allowed it. They didn't care as long as he stayed out of their way, but I cared. You don't mess with my city. At that point, I stopped working with him and started trying to stop his plan and that's about when Sara shot me."

"I thought we were over this!" Sara exclaimed.

"Wait, why exactly did you shoot him, Sara?" Felicity asked.

"I didn't _know_ that Captain Cold was Len yet, and I was the head of the Captain Cold case at the precinct, so when I got a call that he was spotted down at the docks, I went down and he was there and he tried to run—"

"—and she shot me," Leonard finished. Sara rolled her eyes.

"None of this is helping me understand how you ended up working _together_ ," Felicity said.

"After she shot me, she found out who I was and I may have kind of threatened Avery for Sara to not bring me to the precinct—"

"You _what_!" Felicity interrupted.

"—but," Leonard continued, "there was no weight to the threat. I was never going to act on what I said."

"This is madness," Felicity commented.

"Anyway," Sara said, taking over the conversation, "I took him back to my apartment and offered to stitch up the bullet wound from when I shot him and while I was doing that, we ended up talking for a while. I told him about the whole situation with Avery; he told me about the Legion of Doom and Merlyn's plans for Central City. I asked to help bring him down."

"Demanded would be a better word for it," Leonard cut in.

"Didn't I call you at, like, three in the morning," Sara laughed.

"You did."

"Anyway," Sara finished, "it's because of Len that the Markov devices didn't destroy the city."

"And now you're dating?" Felicity confirmed skeptically.

"Yeah," Sara shrugged nonchalantly.

Felicity remained silent for several seconds.

"Sorry," Sara added, "I guess I kinda sprung this on you."

"No kidding," Felicity scoffed. "But it's okay. I'm glad you told me."

Sara pulled Felicity into another hug.

"Thank you so much for being cool about this."

"Why wouldn't I be cool with it? You're happy. I'm not gonna argue with that. Besides, you're cool with me dating Ollie, and that situation was even more complicated, if that's even possible."

* * *

Felicity stuck around in Central City for a few weeks. During the day, she helped out Barry and the rest of the team at S.T.A.R. Labs, and she spent the evening hanging out with Avery, Sara, and Leonard.

A few nights into her stay, Felicity returned to the apartment earlier than she normally did.

"Is Sara here?" she asked Leonard, closing the door behind her.

"No, she's at Ave's ballet class," Leonard told her, "They'll be back in—" he turned to glance at the clock, "—about forty five minutes."

Felicity nodded, placing her purse on the table in front of her.

"I met Lisa today," she said, "She's awesome."

"Thanks. She's working really hard."

"I guess she's doing well at the lab," Felicity nodded, "They all love her down there."

Leonard nodded. To be honest, he was a little thrown off by being alone with Felicity. He'd needed an opportunity to talk to her since she'd shown up in Central City, but now that he actually had the chance, he wasn't sure what to do.

After a few moments of awkward silence, he said, "I actually wanted to talk to you about something."

"Okay," Felicity said tentatively, sitting on the couch across from him.

"I know we met a few days ago, but I've actually needed to talk to you for a while."

"What?" she asked, a look of confusion crossing her face.

"I'll cut to the chase," he said, deciding in that moment to just jump into what he needed, "I'm going to propose to Sara, and I need you to help me do it right."

"Oh my God, yes!" Felicity exclaimed.

"That was easier than I thought it would be," Leonard said to himself.

"Wait, you're really proposing? Are you ready for that? Is Sara ready? Did you talk to her dad? Did you talk to Avery? Oh — how are you gonna do it?" Felicity stopped when she saw Leonard watching her with raised eyebrows, "I'm done."

"Yes, I'm actually proposing," he began, "Yes, we're ready; we've been talking about it for a while. She told me that she doesn't want me to go to her dad — not that I'm complaining. I talked about everything with Avery a couple weeks ago. She's very excited and proving that she can keep a secret. I have no idea how I'm going to propose. That's why I'm asking you. You know her the best. You know what she'll like."

"Oh my God, of course I'll help you. How long did you say until they're back?"

"Probably about a half hour," he told her.

"Okay, then let's get started. First thing's first, Sara's gonna want it to be a big thing, but she won't want it to be a public thing, y'know what I mean? She's, like, not gonna want you to get on one knee in the living room after you watched a movie, but she also doesn't want it to happen in the middle of a restaurant."

Leonard nodded.

"Oh, and she'll want Avery to be part of it," Felicity added, "So did you have any ideas?"

And with that, they started planning.

* * *

A few days later, Sara called to tell Leonard she'd be covering the late shift at the precinct and to ask if he would pick up Avery from summer camp. Leonard and Felicity took the time alone with Avery to explain what was happening with the proposal and how she would be involved.

"That's so cool!" Avery exclaimed after they told her the plan.

"So you have to make sure you don't tell anyone, _especially_ your mom," Leonard continued, "And there's one last part you and I are gonna do together."

"Really?"

"Really."

Felicity's head snapped up.

"Wait, what are you doing? You didn't tell me about this."

"Don't worry," Leonard waved her off, "I've got it under control. Let's go, Avery."

Leonard took Avery's hand and led her out of the apartment, ignoring Felicity's protests as they went.

"Where are we going?" Avery asked as they walked into the elevator.

"You'll see."

* * *

Leonard drove with Avery to downtown Central City. He parked the car and walked with her down the brick sidewalk.

"Where are we going?" Avery asked, grabbing onto his hand as they crossed the street.

"We're almost there," he told her. They walked a couple more blocks and stopped by a jewelry store-front.

"Avie," Leonard said, "Do you know how proposals work?"

"A little bit," she replied, "In that movie we watched on Friday the girl was gonna get married to that guy but she didn't really love him because she loved that waiter guy and anyway the guy was gonna take all her money so its okay that she ended up marrying the waiter."

"Right," Leonard said, slightly taken aback by the amount of words she'd said, "So when I ask your mom to marry me, I'm gonna get down on one knee and give her a ring."

"Why?"

"Because…" Leonard hesitated. Come to think of it, he had no idea why that was how people proposed, "Because that's now people do it. I don't really know why. We'll look it up later. Anyway, I still need to pick out a ring and I wanted your help."

"Really?" Avery's face brightened in excitement.

"Yeah."

"Let's go!" Avery took Leonard's hand and dragged him towards the jewelry store entrance.

A bell above the door jangled as they went inside.

"Pretty!" Avery gasped, running over to a glass case containing a huge diamond necklace. Leonard went to go see what she was looking at. Stuck against the back side of the case was a poster of a young girl in a party dress with her hair curled and pulled up to sit on the top of her head. Around her neck was the same necklace that was in the display case, on her ears was a pair of dangly diamond earrings and there was a sparkly ring on her finger.

"Costume jewelry," the man behind the glass counter called across the store, "Very popular with pageants, theater, and any other event where you need authentic-looking jewels. These appear to be real but they're purely synthetic — and, of course, cheaper."

He came out from behind the counter and approached them.

"Can I interest you in anything today?" he asked.

"Yes, actually," Leonard replied. He lifted Avery into his arms, "I'm proposing to this one's mom soon and I need to pick out a ring."

"Lovely," the man said pompously, "I'll let you take a look around. Let me know if you need any assistance."

Leonard nodded and began looking inside the display cases.

"Ooh, pretty!" Avery said, pointing at one of the rings.

"That's nice," he said, "I just don't think a pink diamond is exactly what you're mom is looking for."

"Awww," Avery pouted.

"What do you think of that one," he suggested, pointing to a ring with a narrow golden band and circular shaped diamond.

"Mommy punches people a lot," Avery said, "Maybe that one will break if she hits someone too hard."

"That's a good point," Leonard nodded. He glanced up to see the salesman looking at them in horror.

It took nearly two hours, but finally they found the perfect ring.

It had two intertwining bands — "that's super strong," Avery commented — of a rose gold hue.

"Pink!" Avery exclaimed when she saw the color of the metal band.

"It's actually called rose gold, Ave," Leonard explained.

"You certainly know your jewelry," the salesman said after hearing him tell Avery the color of the metal, "Are you in the business?"

"In a sense," he replied cryptically.

In the center of the ring was a circle-cut diamond mounted above a sparkling halo of little stones.

"All enforced," the salesman told them, pointing out the metal prongs holding the diamonds in place, "so any…punching….is unlikely to damage the stones."

They got the ring; now all that was left was to propose.

* * *

It was later that same night; Sara still wasn't home yet so Leonard had made Avery dinner. After she ate and helped him clean up, he let her play in her room while he made dinner for himself and Sara. Judging by the classical music and various thumps and thuds coming from her room, she was practicing a ballet routine for her upcoming recital.

While dinner was in the oven, Leonard grabbed his computer, reminded of something Avery had asked him earlier that day.

"Hey Ave," Leonard called, "C'mere."

She ran out of her bedroom in her favorite blue and purple tutu leotard, her ballet shoe-clad feet pattering against the floor as she went.

"What?" she asked, leaping onto the couch next to him.

"Remember earlier when you asked why people give someone a ring when they want to marry them?"

"Uh-huh," Avery replied, curling up into his side.

"Do you want to find out?"

Avery nodded, pushing her curls away from her flushed face.

Leonard typed their question into the search engine and clicked on the first link that appeared.

"Okay," he said, pointing to the words on the screen even though he knew Avery couldn't read them, "so it says people started giving rings to the people they wanted to marry because rings cost a lot of money, so it meant that you 'bought' the person you're marrying."

Avery's nose wrinkled.

"You don't like that, Ave?" Leonard said, chuckling at her reaction.

"No," she whined, "I don't want you to buy my mommy."

"It's different now," he reassured her, "Instead it kind of shows that you belong to each other."

"That's better," Avery nodded.

Leonard told her a little more of the history behind marriage proposals and then, a few minutes before Avery's bedtime, Sara returned home.

"Mommy!" Avery exclaimed when she walked through the door.

"Hi, Avie!" Sara smiled, "What're you guys doing?"

"Avery had some questions about something so we're doing some research," Leonard told her, closing his laptop, "Right Ave?"

"I learned that people don't buy each other anymore," Avery chirped.

"That's right," Sara nodded, looking mildly confused, "It's almost your bedtime, babe. Go get your pjs on."

Avery hopped off the couch and ran into her bedroom.

"Sorry I had to work so late," Sara said, falling into the spot on the couch Avery had just vacated.

"Busy day?" Leonard asked.

"Never isn't," she sighed, "Ave was good?"

"Never isn't," he repeated. Sara tipped her head to the side so her cheek was resting on his shoulder.

"Dinner will be ready soon," he told her.

"You didn't have to wait for me," she replied, although they both knew he always would.

A few minutes later, they heard wailing coming from Avery's bedroom.

"Mommy!" she said through her tears, "I can't find my princess pajamas!"

"And that," Sara said, getting to her feet, "is why she goes to bed at eight."

* * *

About a week passed, and then, finally, the day Leonard was going to propose to Sara arrived. He had spent the last few days preparing for this night: picking up the ring he and Avery had chosen, coaching Avery on her part in the evening, he even spoke with Barry about some of the details — anything he had to do to make the night special.

Leonard's nerves had been higher than usual all day, but it was nothing like they were now, perhaps because the first part of the plan relied on Avery saying her part right — and Sara agreeing to do what Avery requested.

It was Wednesday evening, a little while after they all ate dinner. They were all sitting in the living room. Sara was watching the news on TV and Avery was sitting at the coffee table drawing in a coloring book. Sara didn't notice how Avery kept looking at Leonard, waiting for the signal to say her lines.

Finally, Leonard nodded at her.

"Mommy!" Avery said immediately, "Can I show you how I can ride my bike all by myself?"

Sara looked at the clock.

"It's getting a little late, don't you think?"

"Please, Mommy!" Avery begged, "Please, it'll be so much fun!"

Sara thought about it for a moment.

"Just to the docks and back," she said, "Okay?"

"Yes!" Avery exclaimed. She ran into her bedroom and returned dragging her bike by the handlebars and with her helmet hanging off her head. Sara righted it and tightened the strap before following Avery out of the apartment, Leonard a step behind them.

He could feel the velvet ring box in his pocket, pressing up against his chest. Avery had said her lines perfectly. She'd done her job; now the rest was in his hands.

The streets of Central City were unusually quiet that evening. There were no cars on the street and they were the only people occupying the sidewalk. Avery slowly pedaled on her little pink bike. Leonard and Sara walked hand in hand behind her.

"Mommy!" Avery said, "Look at me biking!"

She twisted around to see if her mom was watching.

"I see, Avie," Sara replied, "Watch where you're going."

Avery turned back to look ahead of her. They walked over a crosswalk and then they were on the way to the docks.

"I always love going to the docks at night," Sara told Leonard, "when all the boats are lit up. It's so pretty."

Leonard nodded in agreement.

"A lot of stuff has happened here," she continued, smiling reminiscently.

"You almost arrested me here," Leonard said, "Only a couple days after we met."

"Oh my god, I forgot about that!" Sara laughed, "I thought you had something to do with that guy we found iced in that diner over there," she pointed to an abandoned diner several hundred yards away, "which you did, but someone called in and gave you an alibi."

"I'm pretty sure that was Barry," he told her, "You also found out that I was Captain Cold here. You chased me over those boats and into that warehouse," he nodded towards the decrepit building, "and then you shot me in the leg."

"That was an accident!" Sara protested, "Kind of. Hey, I got shot there too — _twice_."

"And that's where we stole that first Markov device."

"It's where Merlyn brought Ave when he kidnapped her."

"We should write a book," Sara laughed, "We'd definitely have the material."

Leonard nodded in agreement.

After what seemed like an hour, but was really only a few minutes, they reached the docks.

The marina was set up as a huge slab of concrete on the Central City Bay shore. Vendors of all kinds would be set up around the perimeter on the weekends, when the docks were filled with tourists and sailors and fisherman. Long wooden docks stretched from the edge of the concrete, branching off into the water. Several dozen boats of various sizes were anchored to the docks, and at night, they were lit up, twinkling like stars in the dark.

"Pretty!" Avery said, jumping off her bike and starting to run towards the lights.

"Wait!" Sara called. Avery stopped in her tracks and turned around to face her mother, "You can't just leave your bike here, honey. You can keep riding it or pick it up and carry it. Your choice."

Avery hopped back onto the bike and started pedaling across the concrete dock.

Sara squinted into the distance at a cluster of lights ahead of them.

"That's not a boat, is it?" she asked, trying to discern the strange shape in the center of the dock.

"Mommy!" Avery called, waving them over, "Come see how pretty this is!"

They approached her to see a white pavilion in the center of the dock. Fairy lights were wrapped around the posts and up onto the roof. Rose petals were scattered on the ground around the little structure.

"What's all this for?" Sara asked, holding onto the fenced side of the pavilion.

"Who knows?" he replied.

Barry had actually pulled this together, and with only a little prodding from Felicity.

A moment later, Sara seemed to realize what was happening.

"Lennnn," she said, drawing out his name, "What are you doing?"

Leonard smiled fondly at her.

"I'm not doing anything," he smirked, holding his hands up in feigned ignorance.

"Shut up," she said, her head tipping backwards, "I know what you're doing."

"C'mere Avery," Leonard said. Avery climbed off her bike and took her helmet off, hanging it off of the handlebars by its strap before joining Leonard and Sara under the pavilion, "I know I've talked to you about this before, but I wanted to ask you one more time and make sure it's okay with you. Do you remember when we went to that store downtown and you helped me buy something?"

Avery nodded.

"Well, when I picked that up, I got something else too."

He reached into his back pocket and extracted a tiny diamond ring — part of the costume jewelry collection Avery had noticed at the jewelry store.

"Is it okay that I marry your mom and be your dad?"

"Uh-huh," Avery nodded.

Leonard took Avery's hand and helped put the little ring on her pointer finger. He pulled her into a hug, feeling her chin resting on his shoulder. He planted a kiss on the top of her head and then pointed her in the direction of Felicity, who was standing in the shadows a few yards away.

Leonard straightened and turned back to Sara. She snaked her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"She's gonna break that in ten minutes," she murmured against his lips.

"I got extras," he replied, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"How'd you do all this?" Sara asked, looking up at the fairy lights on the pavilion in wonder.

"Felicity," he replied, "and Barry, actually. There's a chance he's watching us."

"That does sound like Barry," Sara smiled.

From S.T.A.R. Labs, Barry said, "Hey, they're talking about me!"

"I still don't think Snart would want you watching this," Caitlin said from across the room.

"It's fine," Cisco waved her off.

"Sure," Caitlin replied sardonically, although she did approach the monitor to watch the video feed of the docks.

"Sara," Leonard was saying, "We keep going through these things together — crazy things that nobody would even believe, and through everything, you're constantly showing me how brave and strong and kind you are and it's all made me sure that I want to spend my life with you just to see you be the person you are, because you are the most incredible person I've ever met."

He pulled out of his coat pocket the velvet jewelry box and sunk down to one knee.

"Sara, will you—"

"Yes," she interrupted.

"Sara, you have to let me—"

"Yes! Sorry, I'll let you say it."

"Will you—"

"Yes — sorry, _sorry_ , one last time. I had to do it."

"Sara, will you marry me?" Leonard asked.

"Yes, you idiot, yes!"

He guided the glittering band onto her ring finger and stood up, pressing his lips to hers. Sara's hands gripped his shoulders before traveling to the back of his neck, her touch warm against his skin.

"I love you so much," Sara said when they broke apart.

"I love you too."

* * *

 **Yayyyy! I can't believe how long I waited for this chapter! When I first started this story, there were only supposed to be, like, eight chapters, and now there are sixteen with no end in sight (that's not true, but you know what I mean). Anyway, thank you all so much for your support with this story! It means the world to me and feeds my muse. This story is thanks to you!**


	17. Chapter 17

**It has been eIGHT YEARS since the last update of this story. Sorry 'bout that. I had writer's block, college applications, and a severe depressive episode (that I was unaware of until the end, which is worse, somehow), but I am back and *hopefully* back to the regular update schedule (I say that knowing that this one is a day late. Oh well). I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"Can't you just tell them for me?" Sara groaned. It was a few days after that evening at the dock, the night Leonard proposed to her and she said yes. She was sitting on the bed watching Felicity pack up her stuff to head back to Star City.

"You really don't want to tell them?" Felicity asked.

"I just know they're not gonna be as happy as I want them to be, and that sucks because I'm really fucking happy right now."

She was talking about telling her father and sister that she had gotten engaged. She and Leonard had immediately told Lisa and Sara's mother and they were both thrilled, but Sara wasn't sure her family in Star City would react the same way.

"It'll be okay," Felicity told her, "You just have to rip off the band-aid."

"Why can't you just stay here forever?" Sara groaned, leaning back so she was lying on her back on the soft comforter.

"Or you could come back to Star City," Felicity reminded her.

"What about this conversation makes you think I could do that?" Sara replied sardonically.

"Well I wish you luck," Felicity replied, pulling the zipper on her suitcase shut. She picked up her bag and the pair went into the living room where Leonard and Avery were playing Go Fish at the coffee table.

"You heading back to Star City?" Leonard asked, getting to his feet.

"Yep," Felicity replied, nodding.

"Aunt Lissy, don't go!" Avery whined, jumping up and running to Felicity.

"Aw, Avie," she said, lifting Avery into her arms. Avery wrapped her legs around Felicity's waist, burying her face in the fabric of her dress, "I'll see you soon, I promise."

She put Avery down and looked to Leonard.

"Stay out of trouble, Snart," she told him, ignoring his exasperated groan as she pulled him into a hug, "and don't forget about what I told you."

A few days earlier, Felicity had introduced Leonard to the volunteer workforce at the CCPD, a program that allowed citizens to volunteer in various areas of the CCPD.

"You could help out with investigations," Felicity had said when she'd first told him about it, "We all know after the Malcolm Merlyn stuff that you're good at it."

"I'll think about it," Leonard had replied, and that's exactly what he told her now.

"I said I'll consider it," he said, extracting himself from her hug.

"Do you really have to go?" Avery asked again, pulling on the hem of her skirt.

"Yes, Ave, I do," Felicity replied, crouching down to give her another hug, "But I'll see you soon."

She gave one last round of hugs and then she was gone.

Sara sighed.

"I guess I should call my sister and my dad now," she said once the door was closed.

"I can stay with you if you want," Leonard replied.

"It'll probably go over better if it's just me. Can you just keep Avie occupied — wait, not yet."

Sara turned to where Avery was playing with the deck of cards she and Leonard had just been using for their game.

"Avery, do you wanna say hi to Grandpa?" she asked.

"Yeah!" Avery dropped the cards, scattering them across the coffee table, and jumped into Sara's lap. Sara dialed her father's number and listened to the phone ring.

"Maybe he just won't pick up," Sara said dryly, a hint of hopefulness in her voice. Leonard raised his eyebrows.

"What?" she asked innocently.

The ringing ceased.

"Sara?" her father's voice came through the phone.

"Hey Dad," Sara said, "You're on speakerphone. Avery's with me. She wants to say hi."

"Hi-hi," Avery chirped.

"Hi Avery," Quentin said, "How are you?"

"Good."

"So what are you up to tonight?"

"I'm playing Go Fish with Lenny," she replied, bouncing on her knees on the couch cushions, "and I'm winning. Mommy?"

"Uh-huh?" Sara replied.

"Can me and Lenny go play cards now?"

"Yes, Avie, you can go. Say bye to Grandpa."

"Bye-bye, Grandpa, I'm gonna go play with Lenny now," she said as Leonard stood and scooped her into his arms.

"Bye Avery," Quentin said.

They went into Avery's room, closing the door behind them.

" _Lenny_ ," Quentin repeated, "Is that your boyfriend? What, are you living with the guy now?"

"I am, actually," Sara answered, "for a while now. I told you, remember."

"I must have blocked it out," he replied, and Sara wasn't sure if he realized the imputation of what he'd said, " Well, that's exciting."

"Uh-huh. I'm really happy."

"That's good," he replied, "And Avery is too?"

"Yeah, she really is," Sara nodded, even though she knew her father couldn't see her.

"So why'd you call, Sara?" Quentin asked, "It's been kind of a radio silence on your end for the last month."

"Well, I just wanted to tell you that a few days ago," Sara felt her breath hitch in her throat. She inhaled deeply and then started again, "A few days ago, Leonard and I got engaged."

Quentin didn't respond.

"Dad?"

"Engaged?" he repeated, sounding as if he was forcing the word out of his mouth, "but-bu-"

"But what, Dad?" Sara asked defensively. She could feel herself getting angry. She knew she should be giving her dad at least a little time to process what she was telling him, but she had spent so much time imagining her father's reaction, and the knowledge that, at least in that respect, he hadn't let her down in the slightest may have pushed her over the edge.

"But don't you think this is moving a little fast, honey?"

"No," she replied, "I don't, Dad."

"And don't you think you might not be considering Avery in all this? I mean, you met this guy, what, three months ago—"

"It's definitely been longer than that," Sara cut in, but he didn't stop talking.

"—and Avery probably has no idea what's going on. This isn't fair on her!"

"You're failing to consider that maybe I have been involving her in all this. Avery loves Len, longer than I have, probably. She's been part of everything from the start. If she was uncomfortable with any of it, I would know."

" _And_ ," Quentin continued, blatantly ignoring her, "I don't know if you know this, but he never came to me to get my permission to propose to you."

"Get your _permission_?" she spat out, "What is this, the Colonial era? Did you want to make him pay dowry or something?"

"No, Sara, you don't get it," he argued, the volume of his voice significantly higher than it had been at the beginning of their conversation.

"Just so you know, I told him that I didn't want him to go to you for this exact reason!"

"What reason?" Quentin asked angrily.

"C'mon dad," Sara rolled her eyes, "If he _had_ come to you, would you have actually said yes?"

He said nothing, but spluttered for several seconds.

"Wow, I'm shocked," Sara said in a monotone, "Look, all I wanted to do was tell you I'm engaged. I hoped you'd be happy for me. I'll talk to you later."

"But Sara—"

"Bye Dad."

Sara hung up the phone and let out a shaky breath. She sat with her head in her hands for a moment before standing up and heading for Avery's bedroom.

She pushed open the door to see Avery and Leonard halfway through a game of Go Fish."

Sara sat down on the rug beside Leonard and pressed a kiss onto his jaw, draping her arms around his shoulders.

"Do you have any twos?" Avery asked him.

"Go fish," Leonard replied.

Avery picked up a card from the pile between them and added it to the ones she was holding. Sara slid over to sit beside her.

"Do you have any sevens?" Leonard asked.

"Nuh-uh," Avery shook her head, her curls swinging from side to side, "Go fish."

Leonard drew a card from the deck.

Avery surveyed her cards.

"Ask for that one," Sara whispered, reaching over her shoulder to point at the king of hearts in Avery's hand.

"Do you have any kings?" Avery asked, smiling cheekily.

"This is cheating," he said, feigning offense as he forked over his card.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sara replied, smirking at him.

When the game was over — Avery won, with _absolutely_ no help from her mother _at all_ — and the cards were back in their box, Leonard asked,

"How was the call with your dad?"

Sara glanced back to see that Avery was sitting on her bed, playing with a plastic doll.

"Swimmingly, as I'm sure you can imagine," she answered him, rolling her eyes.

"Did you call your sister yet?"

Sara shook her head, "I'm going to now."

"Do you want me to take Avie somewhere?"

"Nah, it's okay," she shrugged

She pulled her phone out of her pocket and called Laurel. It didn't take long for her to pick up.

"Sara?" Laurel said.

"Hey Laurel," she answered, "How're you doing?"

"I'm good. You?"

"I'm really great," she replied, "That's actually why I'm calling."

She looked down when Avery started tugging on her arm.

"But first," she continued, "I think Avie wants to say hi."

"Hi Auntie Laurel," Avery said.

"Hi Ave!" she said cheerfully, "Whatcha doing?"

"I'm playing with my doll and I'm teaching her how to be a ninja like Mulan," she answered, holding up her doll.

"Honey, she's on the phone, she can't see it," Sara told her, "She's trying to show you the doll, Laurel."

"Wow, I'm sure she's beautiful."

"And badass," Avery chirped.

Laurel was silent.

"Did you just say badass?"

"Avery and I have a deal that she can only say badass around the house," Sara explained, "because I don't like getting yelled at by her teacher, right Avie?"

"Uh-huh," Avery nodded, crawling into Leonard's lap.

"So Laurel," Sara said, "you know Felicity spent a couple weeks here, right?"

"Yeah! How is she?"

"She's good, but—"

"How're she and Oliver doing?"

"They're good, but—"

"That's good—"

" _Laurel_ ," Sara groaned, cutting her off, "I'm trying to tell you that while Felicity was here, she helped Len out with something, and a couple days ago, he proposed to me."

Laurel said nothing.

"And I said yes," Sara finished

There was another second of silence.

"Oh my God, Sara!" Laurel finally exclaimed, "You're getting married! I'm so happy for you!"

"Thanks," Sara said, feeling a smile etch its way across her face. Her relationship with her sister was rocky at times, but Sara had no doubt in mind that Laurel would be there for her when she needed to be.

"How did he do it? Did Felicity really help? That's hilarious! Avery must be thrilled! Did you pick a date yet?"

"He did it at the dock at night when all the boats are lit up."

"Aw, that sounds beautiful."

"Yeah, plus the docks are kind, I dunno, sentimental to us, I guess."

"What?"

"I don't know. Things happened there, and — y'know what, It's a long story. Actually, more like a bunch of long stories, but anyway, we went there in the evening when all the lights were lit up and he had some _resourceful_ ," she gave Leonard a knowing look, a mischievous glint in her eyes, "friends set up this whole pavilion covered in fairy lights. He did this whole thing where he sort of proposed to Avery too, and he gave her a little ring — Avie, do you still have the ring?"

"Uh-huh," Avery nodded, "It's in my jewelry box so it doesn't get lost."

"That's smart of you, Ave," Laurel said, "Very responsible. So Sara, did you break the news to Dad yet?"

Sara let out a sigh.

"That bad, huh?" Laurel replied, "Hey, he'll come around.

"Maybe," Sara shrugged.

"Why don't the three of you come to Star City?" she suggested, "Maybe meeting him in person would help."

"They actually have met in person," Sara said, "For, like, half a second."

"Didn't I yell at him or something?" Leonard asked, a smirk on his face.

"You did," Sara nodded, smirking back at him.

"That's probably why he isn't a huge fan of you, Leonard," Laurel said, "I mean, Tommy is terrified of him, and Dad loves that. He's probably not thrilled that Leonard isn't the same way."

"I definitely don't have any problems with that," Sara replied, "I mean, Tommy's great, Laurel, but—"

"Oh believe me, I get it," Laurel replied, "I definitely get it."

They both laughed.

"Seriously though, Sara," she continued, "Come to Star City. It'll be fun. Then we can all gang up on Dad and tell him to get his head out of his ass."

"I wanna help!" Avery chirped.

"See!" Laurel exclaimed.

"Alright," Sara conceded, "Sometime before Avery starts school again, we'll come visit. I promise."

* * *

A few weeks later, they still hadn't made the trip to Star City. Sara felt a bit guilty about it, but she had to work and so did Leonard — he did eventually take Felicity's advice and started working on investigations at the CCPD. Avery had ballet class and was in various summer camps. They had too much going on to make the trip to Star City.

"Avery!" Sara called, "C'mon, we've gotta start this camp assignment thing."

"Why is a summer camp giving homework?" Leonard asked, looking at the construction paper, glue, and markers strewn across the dining table.

"I don't know," Sara sighed, "Avery, let's go!"

Avery finally came out of her room, dragging her feet as she walked down the hallway.

"What's wrong?" Sara asked her.

"I don't wanna do a stupid family tree," she grumbled.

"Why not? It'll be fun!"

"Nuh-uh."

"Well, you still have to do it. Let's go."

Avery climbed onto a dining chair and regarded the craft materials with an expression of distaste that looked strange on her young face.

"Avie, I don't know why you're being so grumpy about this," Sara said, "You love arts and crafts."

Avery said nothing, pouting up at her mother.

Sara helped Avery cut a tree out of green and brown construction paper and glue it to a piece of white cardboard. She drew lines on the tree, and watched Avery write her name on tree trunk. When it was time to start filling the lines for her family, she looked up at her mother with a questioning look on her face.

"S…a…" Sara said, watching Avery painstakingly write out her name on one of the lines above her own, "r…a…Good job."

She helped her fill out the rest of her side of the tree, with Laurel, Quentin, Dinah, and Sara's grandparents, who had long since passed away.

"What about this side?" Avery asked, pointing to all the blank lines on the left side of the tree.

Sara had been dreading that question. She knew when she saw the project that issues would come up when they had to fill out the other side of the family tree. Sara wasn't ready to tell Avery about her dad. The personal goal was to _never_ have to tell her, and while she knew that wasn't exactly feasible, she did hope she could have at least another couple years. She wasn't ready to tell her now.

"Uh, we'll just leave that side empty," she said.

"No-o," Avery whined, "I _have_ to do that side. That's the rules!"

"Everyone's tree is gonna look a little different," Sara tried to tell her, "You have both your grandparents, some people have only one, or none at all. Mia's tree is gonna have two daddies and no mommies, and Seth's tree will have his aunt and uncle at the bottom instead of his mom and dad. It's all gonna be different. That's what makes them special."

"Then how come you drew all those other lines?" Avery asked. Sara had to admit it was a valid question.

"I made a mistake," Sara said, "I was following the template your camp counselor gave you and I wasn't really thinking."

"I _have_ to put something there, Mommy!" Avery whined, "Tell me what to write!"

Leonard could sense Avery's frustration. He could vaguely remember having to do a family tree in second or third grade. Lisa wasn't part of his life yet, which meant his mother still was. He remembered how much he hadn't wanted to write his father's name on the tree, but he had done it anyway. He wasn't sure why he did; it's not like his father would have ever seen it — he never bothered to stay home long enough for Leonard to show him any of his school projects — but he'd still felt obligated to do it, to keep up the illusion that his life at home was happy. He knew Avery's life was very happy, but he also knew how frustrating it could be to have questions that nobody wanted to answer, and he knew Sara didn't want to answer her daughter's question. He could see on her face that she didn't know what to do.

"Or," he supplied, "You could put my name there."

"Really!" Avery exclaimed, her blue eyes widening in excitement. She stood up in her chair, seemingly about throw herself across the table to hug him.

"Avie, sit down," Sara said, "Len, you don't have to do this."

"No, I want to."

Sara took his hand and pulled him into the other room.

"Stay there, Ave," Sara said when it looked like Avery was going to follow them.

"You don't have to do this," Sara repeated once they were out of Avery's earshot.

"I want to," he said again.

"But I thought you said you wanted to wait until after we got married," she replied.

"Yeah, that's what we agreed," he nodded, "but Ave first asked me a couple months ago, when we were all up in the mountains."

"She did?"

Leonard nodded, "And I had wanted to say yes then, but I knew you should be involved, so I told her to wait."

"So you'd really be okay with this? I mean, I don't want you to feel like you're doing it just to, you know, defuse this whole tree thing. If you-"

She was silenced when Leonard kissed her, one hand on her back, the other at the nape her neck, his thumb on her cheek.

"Sara," he said, "I mean it."

"Right," she replied breathlessly, "Right."

She stepped away from him, turning towards the dining room where Avery still sat dutifully in her chair.

"Avery, c'mere," Sara said. She sat on the couch, her legs curled under her. Leonard sat beside her.

Avery climbed out of her chair and bounced into the living room, leaping onto the couch.

"Can I really put your name on the family tree, Lenny?" she asked, resting her chin in her hands, her elbows pressing into the couch cushions.

"Yep," Leonard replied.

"Y'know, Avie," Sara said, "When Lenny and I get married, it means we're a family, all three of us, right."

"Uh-huh," she nodded, a smile on her face, "So I get to put Lenny's name on the tree?"

"Yes," Sara replied, "But that's not the only thing. Do you remember when we were at the cabin in the mountains and you asked if you could call Lenny dad, and I told you to wait? Do you remember that?" Avery nodded, "Well, do you wanna stop waiting."

There was a moment of silence as Avery comprehended what her mother had said — Sara actually started to wonder if she'd been too cryptic for the four-year-old, but then Avery's mouth spread into a grin and her eyes filled with wonder.

"Really?" she asked frantically, practically shaking with excitement.

"Really," Sara answered, unable to wipe the smile off her face even if she'd wanted to. Avery crawled into Leonard's lap.

"Really?" she asked again, "I can really call you daddy?"

"Yes, Avie, you can," Leonard smiled. Avery hugged him, wrapping her arms around his neck and nuzzling her face in the soft fabric of his shirt. Leonard pressed a kiss onto the top of her head.

"Let's go do the tree!" Avery yelped, grabbing Leonard's hand and pulling him to his feet.

They all went back into the dining room. Avery sat in front of the paper cut-out tree and picked up her pencil.

Leonard helped her fill in the lines on the other side of the tree — _his_ side of the tree. He helped Avery spell his name, along with Lisa's, his mother's, and his grandparents' (he skipped over his father, Sara noticed, and instead gave Avery the name of a social worker he'd been particularly fond of).

When the tree was complete, Avery stood back to view her handwork.

"How's it look?" Sara asked.

"I love it!" Avery said, doing a happy little dance.

"You certainly seem to have a new outlook on the situation," she smiled.

"This is the best day ever!" she exclaimed, her curls bouncing as she jumped up and down.

Later that night, Avery insisted that Leonard join her and Sara for bedtime stories. When they were done reading, Sara hugged her daughter, feeling her warm breath against the skin of her neck.

"Goodnight Avie," she said, "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Mommy."

Avery twisted under her blankets to hug Leonard, her arms around his neck and her cheek against the cotton of his shirt.

"G'night Avery," he said, kissing her forehead.

She tipped her head up to meet his eyes, her chin pressing into his chest.

"Goodnight Da-dee," she replied, the word leaving her mouth with an air of unfamiliarity.

"I'm gonna cry," Sara whispered, one hand at her heart.

They stood up.

"Goodnight, Ave," Sara said one last time before they headed for the door, flicking the lights off behind them

The second the door was closed, Sara's lips collided with his. Her hands traveled up to his face, her fingertips brushing his neck as she pulled him closer to her. She had caught him by surprise, but it didn't take long for him to snake his arms around her waist, one hand moving up her back to tangle in her long blonde hair.

Finally, when he was out of air, he pulled away.

"What was that for?" he asked with a hint of a smirk on his lips.

Sara said nothing for a moment, just shook her head, looking to the ceiling. Finally, she met his eyes.

"I just—" she stopped, letting out a laugh, "You keep doing these things that make me fall more and more in love with you."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he replied, feigning ignorance.

"Shut up," she replied, nudging his arm with her shoulder, "Seriously Len, this is, like, one of the best days in Avery's life. Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me," he shook his head.

"And you're _sure_ you're okay with her calling you…you know?" she asked, searching his face for any sign of hesitation.

"Sara," he said, "I meant what I said before. It just felt…right, and it still does."

"Well, if you're sure…" she trailed off.

"I'm sure," he replied, "But there is something we should talk about."

"What?" she replied, pulling him by his hand to the couch.

"That visit to Star City you promised your sister?" he reminded her.

"I was kind of hoping she'd just forget about that," she said sheepishly.

"She probably didn't," he replied, "and she _is_ making an effort to be good about everything."

Sara sighed.

"Yeah, I know."

"And you can see Felicity."

She seemed to brighten at her friend's name.

"That's true," she said optimistically, "I guess we should make the trip soon."

"Next weekend?"

"Maybe that's a little _too_ soon," she replied. Leonard raised his eyebrows, "Fine. Next weekend, we'll go to Star City."

* * *

 **This was kind of an exposition-y chapter, but that's alright (it was actually originally the first half of the next chapter, but when that clocked in at 37 pages, I decided to split it into two). I know that Avery calling Len her dad was a moment everyone wanted to see, so I hope you all enjoyed!**


	18. Chapter 18

"I feel like this is a bad idea," Sara said as she rolled her suitcase into the living room and stood it next to Leonard's.

"That probably means that it is, but we should do it anyway," Leonard replied. Sara shot him a feigned _Look_ , but smiled as she met his eyes.

That afternoon, when Avery got home from her last day of summer camp, they had begun packing up for their trip to Star City.

"Avery!" Sara called, "Let's go!"

"My suitcase won't close, Mommy," Avery said from her bedroom.

Sara sighed and followed her voice into the room. She saw Avery tugging on the zipper of her purple suitcase. Sara could see shirtsleeves and stuffed animal limbs hanging over the side of the bag.

"Ave, we're going away for one weekend. Your suitcase shouldn't be overflowing."

She flipped open the top of the luggage to reveal a mess of in and out of season clothes, at least six pairs of shoes, her bunny blanket and three or four more stuffed animals, a flashlight, a CD player with no accompanying CDs, the TV remote, several books, what appeared to be all of her arts and crafts supplies, and, scattered over everything like confetti, was just enough pieces for half a jigsaw puzzle.

"Why do you need the remote?" Sara asked, although she wasn't entirely sure if that's what she should be asking about first.

"'Cos I don't know how to use the one at Auntie Laurel's house," Avery answered.

"Ave," Sara said, attempting to hide the frustration in her voice, "That's not—that's not how it works."

Sara tipped her head up to the ceiling, letting her eyes squeeze shut.

She turned around and started back out of the room.

"Stay here," she said absently as she noticed Avery following her.

She went back into the living room where Leonard sat on the couch waiting to leave.

"I'm really not in the mental state to deal with," she waved a hand towards Avery's bedroom, " _this_ right now, Len."

"I'll take care of it," Leonard said, standing from the couch and heading towards Avery's bedroom.

Sara sat on the couch and pressed the heels of her palms against her eyes, her elbows digging into her knees. She needed a moment to catch her breath, to stabilize herself. She knew she wasn't actually mad at Avery — she wasn't mad at anyone. She was just overwhelmed by the prospect of this visit with her family. She was perfectly fine with not seeing them until the wedding, but she knew it was important to Leonard that they did this right and she wanted to respect that.

That didn't mean it would be easy.

She stood up when Avery's door opened.

"Stay in there for a second," Leonard quietly told Avery, closing the door once again.

"We got her suitcase closed," he told Sara, "The clothes are now summer appropriate, we're down to two pairs of shoes and one stuffed animal. I never got any explanation for the puzzle pieces, but they're gone too. We kept the flashlight and one coloring book and some crayons. She's ready to go."

"Thanks, Len," Sara said gratefully, trying to conceal a heaviness in her voice.

Leonard walked towards her and engulfed her in his arms. Sara instantly melted into him, her arms wrapping around his waist.

"It's gonna be okay," he told her.

"But what if it isn't?" she asked, her voice muffled in his jacket.

"Then that's their problem," he replied.

Not too long later, they got into the car and headed for Star City.

* * *

Laurel and Tommy lived in a penthouse in the middle of Star City. It was large and modern, with floor to ceiling windows, and clean, white decor.

Laurel threw open the door mere moments after Sara knocked on it.

"Sara!" she exclaimed, pulling her sister into a tight hug.

"Hey Laurel," she replied. Laurel quickly pulled away.

"So let me see it!" she demanded.

"See wha—" but Laurel had already grabbed her hand.

"The ring!" Laurel pulled Sara closer to her to better examine the ring on her finger, "Ooh, it's so pretty! Leonard had good taste!"

"I think Avery helped him pick it out."

"That's so cute!" she replied. She hugged her sister a second time, "Thanks for coming to visit. I missed you!"

"I missed you too," Sara said, "and, I mean, once Ave starts school again, it'll be harder for us to get up here. This seemed like the perfect time."

"Where is Avery, anyway?" Laurel asked.

"She's still downstairs with Len, I think," Sara answered, "She had a little meltdown in the car because she forgot her ballet slippers at home and now apparently can't practice. She only wanted Len, so I just figured I'd come up now."

"Does Dad know?" Laurel glanced back into the penthouse, apparently in the direction of Quentin Lance.

"About what, that I'm engaged to Len or that he's here?"

"Both."

"Yeah, he knows."

"Did I hear Sara?" Quentin called. Laurel led Sara deeper into the penthouse, into the living room where their father was sitting on the white sectional sofa. Tommy Merlyn was in the room as well, sitting in an armchair a safe distance from his father-in-law.

"Hey Dad," Sara said. He stood from the couch to give her a hug.

She heard the faint sound of knocking on the door.

"That'll be Len and Avery," Sara said.

"I'll let them in," Laurel said, heading back out of the living room.

"So you did bring your boyfriend," Quentin said.

"Fiancé," Sara corrected cooly, "I said I would."

Quentin sighed.

"Let's not do this, Sara," he said, "Let's try to have a pleasant evening."

"I will if you will."

Laurel headed towards the door, pretending she couldn't hear the conversation between her sister and her father.

She pulled the door open to see Leonard standing in the hallway, Avery in his arms. Her head was down, her cheek pressing into his shoulder, a curtain of curls shielding her face.

"Hey, guys! C'mon in," Laurel said cheerfully, stepping back to let Leonard walk through the doorway.

"Hi Avery," Laurel said, smiling. Avery lifted her head, her face brightening a little when she saw her aunt.

"Hi Auntie Laurel," she said. Laurel took Avery from Leonard to give her a hug. After a moment, she squirmed to be put down. She went back over to Leonard, holding onto his leg.

"Auntie Laurel," Avery said, "This is my Daddy."

"Excuse me?" Laurel replied, a blank expression on her face.

"This is my Daddy," she repeated, looking up at Leonard.

" _Oh_ ," Laurel said, drawing the word out.

"It's nice to see you, Laurel," Leonard said, lifting Avery into his arms again.

"Nice to see you," she nodded, "It's been a while."

"It has."

They walked down the hallway and into the living room.

"Grandpa!" Avery exclaimed when she saw Quentin sitting on the couch. He sat up and opened his arms as Avery ran into them.

"Hi Avery!" he said, "Wow, you got so big!"

"Uh-huh!" she chirped, stepping away. She grabbed onto Leonard's hand.

"Look," she said, "This is my dad."

"He's your what?" he asked.

"My dad," she repeated, smiling cheekily.

Quentin met Sara's eyes, a look of confusion on his face. Sara raised her eyebrows at him, silently daring him to say anything that would upset his granddaughter.

"That's great, Avery," he finally said, looking as if he'd just swallowed something sour. He looked at Leonard, "I don't think we've formally met. I'm Quentin Lance."

"Leonard Snart," he replied, shaking his hand. He sat down on the white couch next to Sara. Avery climbed into his lap.

"So you guys are getting married?" Quentin asked, trying very hard to conceal his discomfort.

"We are," Sara nodded.

"Did you pick a date yet?" Laurel asked.

"Mid-October," she replied.

"October? Wait, _October_ , like _this_ October, three months from now October?" Laurel exclaimed, panic-stricken.

"Yep," she nodded.

"But you only have three months!"

"We didn't see the point in waiting," she shrugged, "Besides, I like fall colors and we'll get back from the honeymoon in time to take Ave trick-or-treating."

"But what about the food and flowers and dress fittings and everything?" she replied, looking a bit faint.

"We decided anything if it wouldn't be ready by mid-October, we just shouldn't bother."

"I feel like you're saying this just to upset me," Laurel said.

"That may have been part of why we chose it," Sara joked.

"Donna's gonna freak," Quentin commented dryly.

"I don't think there's really anything she can do," she shrugged.

Laurel continued trying to get Sara to talk about wedding plans, but when she seemed to be uninterested, she gave up.

"So are you guys hungry?" Laurel asked, "We were thinking of going out for dinner and then coming back to watch a movie, Avery's pick. Does that sound good?"

"Yeah, sure," Sara nodded, "I could eat."

Forty five minutes later, they all sat in the corner booth of a dimly lit Italian restaurant, waiting for their food to arrive.

"Hey, how's Central recovering?" Tommy asked, "It's been a while since I went there to see how everything is doing."

"After the whole, uh, situation with Merlyn, Tommy's been very busy since he took over the CEO position at Merlyn Global Group," Laurel explained (kind of randomly, in Sara's opinion).

Yeah, everyone's doing great," Sara answered Tommy, somewhat ignoring her sister, "There are still some areas that need work, but things have definitely slowed down at the precinct in the last few weeks."

"That's great!" Tommy replied, "I'm really glad that I was able to rectify what happened."

Sara nodded. She managed to not point out how he'd never actually contributed anything to the restoration of Central City besides money. The one trip he'd made was for a press conference and a publicity shoot at a garden where he'd planted a commemorative tree.

She glanced over at Leonard and the expression on his face told her that he was thinking the same thing. He rolled his eyes and Sara had to hold back a laugh.

"Dad," Laurel said, "did you know that Leonard and Sara were the ones who deactivated that first earthquake machine?"

For the first time that night, Quentin looked impressed. Sara knew why Laurel had brought this up. Their father's refusal to even look at Leonard hadn't gone unnoticed by Sara, but she also knew that all the water cooler conversation at the SCPD precinct was who those mystery heroes who saved half the city from total destruction were. Sara wondered how long Laurel had been waiting to divulge this information to her father, but she could tell she'd been holding out for the right time. This was certainly it.

"Really?" Quentin asked. Sara nodded nonchalantly. He glanced briefly at Leonard before meeting Sara's eyes again, "And him too?"

"Len was the one who actually cut the wires to defuse the thing," she answered, "I just, I dunno, held off the guards."

"She's downplaying it," Leonard told them, "She annihilated a dozen guards singlehanded."

"I wouldn't expect anything else," Quentin replied proudly.

From there, Sara watched her father return to the kind, understanding man she knew he could be (if he really tried). She knew it wasn't perfect, and she knew it'd probably never be perfect, but this was a huge step forwards and Sara felt the weight of this trip starting to lessen.

An hour into dinner, Sara could see that Avery was fading fast. She was curled up on the leather bench with her head in Leonard's lap. One thumb was in her mouth, the other hand holding onto Leonard's fingers.

"You tired," Leonard asked her, brushing her messy curls out of her face with his free hand. Avery said nothing, only managing a slow blink, "I guess that's my answer."

"Do you want to head out," Laurel asked, watching Avery's eyes droop closed.

"Yeah, we probably should," Sara nodded, "She's gonna start melting down soon."

By the time they returned to the penthouse, Avery was completely asleep.

"Why don't we hold off on that movie?" Laurel suggested once they were inside.

Avery lifted her head from Leonard's shoulder.

"No-o," she whined drowsily, "I wanna watch a movie."

"You sure?" Sara asked her, "You don't think you'll fall asleep?"

"Nuh-uh," Avery shook her head.

"Alright," she replied skeptically.

Avery was asleep thirty minutes into _Zootopia_.

"I'm gonna take her to bed," Leonard said, lifting her up from where she had been curled against his side.

Laurel paused the movie.

"Aww," Tommy said, the TV illuminating a look of genuine disappointment on his face.

Laurel rolled her eyes and turned the movie back on.

Avery's eyes blinked open.

"Can you read me more Narnia, Daddy?" she asked Leonard.

"Just one chapter," he said, heading into one of the guest rooms.

"Isn't that kind of unhealthy?" Laurel commented, her voice barely audible over the movie.

"Is what unhealthy?" Sara asked.

"Avery calling him her dad."

"I was just about to say the same thing," Quentin said from his spot on the couch.

"Why would it be?" Sara replied, "He's okay with it, it makes Avery happy, and the way I see it, he is her dad. He's helping me raise her, so he deserves the title."

"But what if…" Laurel hesitated, "What if her real dad shows up?"

"That jackass is not her real dad," Sara said sharply. She hesitated, aware that she shouldn't be getting angry, at least, not yet, "He might be her dad biologically, but he gave up any chance of actually being her dad when he didn't even try to stay. Leonard is here, and _he_ isn't, and if he ever does come back, that's what I'll tell him."

"But if he did come back, it doesn't sound like you'd even give him a chance to be in Avery's life," Laurel replied, an odd expression on her face that Sara could find no explanation for.

"Of course I'd give him a chance," she said, "but he's going to have to understand that he's second to Leonard. I mean, you saw the two of them today. That's not going to just go away if Ave's biological father comes back. He's not going to become "dad of the year" by just showing up. That's something you earn."

Neither Laurel nor Quentin said anything else.

Leonard returned to the living room not too long later.

"She asleep?" Sara asked. He nodded, sitting next to her on the couch. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he pressed a kiss to her temple. Quentin watched them curiously.

A couple minutes later, he glanced at the time.

"I should head out," he said, getting to his feet, "It's late."

"Bye dad," Sara said.

"See you tomorrow," Laurel added.

Quentin nodded and headed for the door.

"So what are your plans for tomorrow?" she asked them.

Not too long later, Sara, Leonard, and Laurel headed off to their beds, leaving Tommy to finish _Zootopia_ on his own.

* * *

The next morning, Laurel was already up and dressed when Sara trudged into the kitchen in her pajamas.

Laurel handed her a mug of coffee and said, "Avery's awake. I gave her a bowl of cereal and put the TV on. Is that okay?"

Sara nodded, sipping the hot coffee.

"Dad called," Laurel continued, "He has to go to work today. He wants you to call him back."

Sara rolled her eyes, but went to grab her phone from the beside table.

"You'll be pleased to know that my dad is flaking on us," she told Leonard who was pulling on a sweater.

"Am I pleased to know that, or are you?" he replied, smirking. She ignored him, listening to the dial tone as she called her father.

"Hey, Sara!" he said when he picked up. Sara could hear noises from the precinct in the background.

"Hey Dad," she replied.

"I already told Laurel, but I just wanted to let you know that I got called into work this morning."

"It's alright," she told him, "Don't worry about it. I'll talk to you later."

"Wait," he said, "I just wanted to apologize for how I've been acting, because I can't do it in person."

"I'm listening," Sara replied after a moment.

"Look, it's not easy for me, this whole you living in a different city from me thing. With Laurel, I always know how she's doing and what she's up to, but with you, I don't."

"Oh, I'm so sorry you can't keep tabs on me, Dad," she rolled her eyes.

"No, that's not what I meant," he replied, "I just mean that it's been hard for me to accept that I can't always be a part of your life, but it's not your job to make me feel better about that. You're getting _married_ , Sara. That's huge, and it was kind of just sprung on me. But I shouldn't have acted the way I did. It was wrong of me, and I'm sorry."

"It's alright, Dad," Sara said, letting out a heavy sigh. She knew that if she hadn't just woken up, she could have brought herself to say more, but she wasn't able to find the words, "I'll talk you you later, okay? Bye."

"Bye Sara."

She dropped the phone onto the soft mattress.

"How'd it go?" Leonard asked.

"I just woke up and I'm already exhausted."

* * *

A few hours later, they all went out for brunch at a café in downtown Star City. There, they met up with Felicity.

"Sara!" she exclaimed as she approached their table.

"Felicity!" Sara replied, quickly standing to hug her friend.

"Oh my God, I missed you so much," she said.

"I missed you too, Lis."

"Auntie Lissy!" Avery exclaimed, standing up on her chair and stretching her arms towards Felicity.

"Avery!" she said cheerfully, scooping her up and planting little kisses all over her cheeks. Even Leonard gave her a begrudging hug.

"Long time, no see," Felicity said, a smile on her face as she sat next to Sara, "Hey Laurel."

"Felicity," she nodded, "How's Oliver?"

"He's great," she smiled, "I wanted him to come with me, but he said no. I think he might be afraid of, well, you."

Sara caught a hint of trepidation in her voice, as if she'd realized too late that bringing up Laurel's ex-boyfriend might not have been the best idea. However, after a moment, Laurel smirked.

"Good," she replied, then she added, "But seriously, he should have come."

"It'd be like a triple date!" Tommy said cheerfully. Leonard elbowed Sara as she badly concealed a snort in the back of her hand.

"So," Laurel said, ignoring her husband, "What are your plans for today?"

"I am taking Sara out shopping," Felicity told her, "and you are gonna go out with Leonard for a bit and get to know your future brother-in-law."

"Felicity," Sara laughed, shaking her head in exasperation.

"What?" she asked innocently.

Halfway through brunch, Tommy got called into the office.

"Sorry everybody," he said, standing from the table, "I'm being summoned."

He kissed Laurel and then left the cafe.

When they were done eating, they headed off into downtown Star City. It didn't take long for Felicity to find a shop to drag Sara into.

"Let's go!" she said, pulling Sara towards the door of a clothing store nestled between a bank and a toy shop. Sara hesitated and looked to her daughter, who was holding Leonard's hand as they walked down the street.

"Avie, do you want to come with me and Auntie Lissy?" she asked.

"No, I wanna stay with Dada," she replied, leaning towards Leonard so her cheek was pressed against the back of his hand.

"That was so cute I can't even be mad about it," Sara said, "Alright, I'll see you guys later then."

She let Felicity lead her into the clothing store.

"So," Laurel said somewhat awkwardly, "What do you want to do?"

"Can we go see the fishies, Auntie Laurel?" Avery asked.

"Yeah, sure," she nodded.

"What fish are we talking about?" Leonard asked as they began walking down the brick sidewalk.

"There's a park nearby that has a big fountain with koi fish in it," she explained, "and there's a pond with turtles and a playground and stuff. I used to take Ave when she and Sara still lived here, and whenever she would visit after she moved."

They walked a little ways down the street to a gap between two buildings. A gate was built between the two brick walls and they passed through it into a large, green park.

Avery let go of Leonard's hand and started to run down the stone path.

"Don't go too far," he called, keeping his eyes trained on Avery.

"She's such a good kid," Laurel commented fondly, "and she's completely obsessed with you."

Leonard didn't respond, but Laurel could see a hint of a smile on his face.

It didn't take long for them to reach the fountain. Avery beat them there, and they found her peering over the edge of the stone sculpture. It was tall, taller than Leonard, and had two tiers. The bottom wasn't part of the fountain, just a pool for several dozen koi fish to swim lazily around in. The top tier sprayed a jet of water into the air, splashing back down into its stone bowl.

"Look at the fish, Daddy," Avery called, waving him over to her. He looked down into the fountain to see colorful koi fish swimming in the warm water.

Avery, barely tall enough to see over the edge of the fountain, pushed herself up on the stone to get a better look. She reached an arm into the water, reaching towards a white koi fish spotted with orange and black.

"Be careful," Leonard warned her, "You don't want to fall in and be soaking wet all day."

"I won't," she told him.

"And leave the fish alone," he added as he went to sit on a bench with Laurel.

"She's such a good kid," Laurel said again. Leonard nodded. They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes until Laurel sat up straighter, recrossing her legs and angling herself towards Leonard.

"I have a question for you," she said.

"Shoot," he replied.

"How did this whole thing between you and Sara happen? I mean, we were both at that dinner at Sara's in, like, April and the two of you weren't together or anything then. It's not even five months later and now you're getting married. Like, how did that happen?" she asked. Then she added, "I'm not trying to be condescending or anything. It's just that Sara never tells me anything anymore."

"Well, I don't know about Sara," he began, "but for me, it all happened before I realized it was happening."

"Huh?"

"It all happened really naturally," he restated, "It's hard for me to find people I get along with — I'm sure that doesn't surprise you at all. There aren't many people I actually enjoy being around, but from the day I met Sara, she's been on that list. I've always just been drawn to her and I guess that grew into more as we worked together to stop Merlyn."

He paused when Avery ran over to them, jumping into Leonard's lap.

"Daddy," she said, "Can we go see the turtles?"

"Sure," he said. They all got to their feet and started down another path built on the edge of the park. It ran alongside the back of the buildings on one side of downtown Star City. Ivy and bushes grew up the brick walls and along the chainlink fence separating the buildings from the park.

Leonard and Laurel followed Avery down the path to a large pond.

"Dada can you take my shoes?" Avery asked, pulling her sandals off of her feet and handing them to Leonard. He took them and watched as she walked onto a large flat rock that gently sloped into the pond. She sat down, her feet in the water.

Leonard and Laurel stood on the path behind her.

"So working to stop Malcolm pushed you together?" Laurel asked, continuing their conversation.

"Yeah," he nodded, "There's no way it wouldn't have. A lot of what we were doing was really hard on us — emotionally, I mean — and because we were the only ones who knew about it, we had to rely on each other for everything about it." Laurel nodded understandingly. Then he added, "And that's not even mentioning how we both almost died."

" _What?"_ Laurel asked, aghast, "How?"

"It was a few months ago. Sara was shot in the stomach," he replied, much to Laurel's shock, "by someone who was trying to get in the way of us stealing the Markov device. I got her to help in time, but she lost a lot of blood and she flatlined for a few seconds. It was…" he hesitated, searching for the right words, "…the worst night of my life. I think that was the night I knew I loved her."

Laurel was silent for a moment, silently processing what he'd told her.

"And you," she prompted him.

"A building almost collapsed on me while I was helping people during the earthquake. I was fine, but Sara saw the whole thing except when I got out of the way. She thought I was dead. She told me later that thinking I was dead was what made her realized she loved me."

"You loved each other when you thought you lost each other," Laurel murmured, more to herself than to Leonard. She met his eyes, "That's really beautiful."

"I think that's why I haven't really noticed that our relationship has progressed…differently that a _normal_ one. We skipped over the awkward first parts to just, I dunno, comfortably loving each other, because we loved each other before we were together. It doesn't feel like it's only been six months. It feels like it's been years."

Laurel couldn't find anything to say in response to him.

"Look!" Avery called. Leonard walked over to her and crouched down by the water. Avery showed him a little turtle she held carefully in her cupped hands.

"Wow," he said. He looked out into the pond and saw dozens of little turtles paddling their short arms and legs in the shallow water.

"I'm being careful," she told him.

"That's good," he replied. He moved back to sit on the rock behind her. Laurel sat crosslegged beside him.

"I'm sorry that my dad is giving you guys such a hard time," she told him, keeping her voice low and out of Avery's earshot.

"Not a big deal," he said "I've had worse. I think it's bothering Sara more than me."

Laurel nodded.

Avery played with the turtles for a while before they moved onto the playground.

During the next hour, Leonard and Laurel continued to talk, sitting on a wooden bench facing the colorful metal playground equipment. Laurel got more wedding ideas out of him than her sister. He told her about finding a job now that his mission with Sara was complete.

"I tried out investigative work at the CCPD, and I liked it, but I graduated from college with a bachelor's degree in journalism, and I never really got to use it. I know someone involved in investigative journalism. I thought maybe she could help me get involved in that."

"Yeah, definitely," she nodded.

In the middle of a discussion about Laurel's job as a defense attorney, Leonard was distracted by a pair of slender arms snaking around his neck.

"Hey babe," a familiar voice said. Leonard looked to see Sara, her chin balanced on his shoulder.

"Hey," he replied. She pulled away and sat beside him on the bench, Felicity standing to her side.

"How'd the shopping go?" Laurel asked, eyeing the half-dozen bags they were carrying.

"Great," Felicity replied happily, "But get this: Sara says they should head out now."

"What!" Laurel exclaimed, "You're leaving?"

"Yeah, we should," Sara nodded, "I don't want to get back too late because Ave will be hungry and cranky. Plus she has her ballet class tomorrow."

"Alright," Laurel said, disappointment in her voice.

They went back to the penthouse to pack up their things, and then they headed for the door.

"Thanks for visiting," Laurel said as they all stood in the hallway in front of the door. She was holding Avery, hugging her tightly and rocking back and forth slightly, "I really love seeing you all."

"Yeah," Sara agreed, "I had fun. You should come visit us sometime."

"I will," she replied. She put Avery down and gave her sister a hug.

"It was nice to see you, Leonard," Laurel said, "Sara, I can see why you love him so much."

"Thanks, Laurel," Sara said, a genuine smile on her face.

After another round of hugs, Sara, Leonard, and Avery headed home.

* * *

They returned to their apartment in the late afternoon.

"We're home!" Avery exclaimed as she bounded through the doorway.

"Did you have fun visiting Auntie Laurel?" Sara asked her, pulling her suitcase along behind her as she followed Avery into the apartment.

"Uh-huh," she nodded before running off into her room to play.

Sara collapsed onto the couch.

"C'mon, it wasn't that bad," Leonard replied, sitting beside her.

"No, you're right," she nodded, "It was actually really good. It's just, I dunno, draining. It makes me think of when I was living with them which was not great."

He nodded, then glanced at the time.

"We should get dinner started," he said, getting back to his feet.

Together, they made dinner — spaghetti and meatballs, a favorite of Avery's — and talked about their visit to Star City. Leonard's comments had Sara nearly crying with laughter.

"Tommy is the most oblivious person I've met in my entire life," he said, stirring a pot of spaghetti sauce.

"He's so clueless," Sara choked out through her laughter, "No, my favorite was when Laurel kept telling us Tommy was CEO, over and over again."

"That was pretty bad," he chuckled.

"And what about when Tommy suggested a triple date," Sara said, barely getting the sentence out before dissolving into a laughing fit.

"I think I'd somehow be the least problematic person at the table," he replied, causing Sara to laugh so hard she nearly spilled spaghetti all over the stovetop as she transferred the pasta from the pot to a strainer.

When they were nearly finished making dinner, Sara poked her head in Avery's room to see that Avery was in a leotard and tutu, practicing ballet.

"Dinner's almost ready," she said, "Go change out of your dance clothes and come help me set the table."

"No!" Avery replied, holding her arms protectively over herself.

"No, what?"

"I wanna keep my tutu on," she replied stubbornly.

"If you get spaghetti on it, I'm not gonna get the stains out for you," Sara replied, knowing full well that she would.

"We're having spaghetti?" Avery asked excitedly.

"Yeah, we are, so go change."

Avery bounded towards the closet as Sara left the room.

They all sat around the dining table and ate dinner. Avery, as Sara had predicted, ended up wearing more than she actually ate.

"It's in your hair, Avery," she said later while she gave her a bath, "How did you get spaghetti in your hair?"

"I dunno," she giggled, splashing in the bubbly bath water.

The half-closed door pushed open as Leonard poked his head into the bathroom.

"Hey Sara," he said, "You might want to come out here."

Sara got to he feet and followed him into the hallway. She could immediately see a look of discomfort on his face.

"What?" she asked, "What's wrong."

"There's someone at the door," he began.

"Who is it? It better not be my dad," she shook her head. Feeling her temper flare, she started stalking towards the door. Leonard grabbed her arm, stopping her in her tracks and turning her to face him.

"No Sara, it's not him. I don't know who he is but he…" he hesitated, "…he says he's Avery's dad."

"What?" she asked somewhat frantically, "He's here? _He's_ here?" How did he get here? How does he knew where we live — _wait —_ did you let him in?"

"No, I didn't," Leonard shook his head, "I actually sort of shut the door on him."

This seemed to calm Sara slightly.

"I would to, to be honest," she said, and Leonard was relieved to hear some of her usual sarcasm in her voice.

"Do you want me to make him leave?" he asked her.

"No," she shook her head, "I should at least find out what he wants. Can you just stay in here with Avery. I already washed her hair and everything, so can you just, like, get her into pjs and brush her teeth and, I dunno, just keep her out of…all this…" she trailed off distractedly.

He nodded and went into the bathroom where Sara could hear Avery playing with toys in the bathtub. When the door was closed, Sara started heading for the entryway. She hesitated just before the door, trying to get any sense of who was standing behind it. She thought she heard a breath, but it may have just been her own.

Finally, she grabbed the doorknob, twisted, and pulled the door open.

In the hallway stood a man Sara hadn't seen in more than five years. He was tall — although not as tall as she remembered (she supposed she could thank Leonard for that). His face was lined and his eyes were narrow and blue. He had a scruffy beard and light brown hair that stuck up in a way that made it look like it was on purpose.

She met his eyes.

"What are you doing here, Nate?"

* * *

 **He's heeeere!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Sorry for the extended wait. My senior year capstone project is also creative writing, and it's taking up most of my time. The final presentation isn't until mid-May, so I wouldn't expect another update until after that, but I am always working :)**

* * *

"What are you doing here, Nate?" Sara asked.

"Uh, well, I'm back," Nate said.

"What?"

"I'm back…like, I'm back."

"How can you be _back_ if you were never here in the first place?"

"Huh?"

Sara let out an exasperated huff, looking to the ceiling.

"Nate, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"I'm here because, you know, you and I have a, uh, a kid…together, right?"

"Your involvement in the aforementioned kid was minimal at best, but, technically, yes."

"Uh, well, I'm here to see…uh, them."

Sara scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"What?" Nate exclaimed.

"Nate, you show up here at eight o'clock at night and just expect a child to be handed to you? No way. I mean, do you even know your kid's name — no wait, do you even know if your kid is a boy or a girl?"

"Uh, well…"

"No, because you didn't bother to stay long enough to find out," she cut him off, "How did you even find me?"

"I asked Laurel and she told me," he answered immediately.

There wasn't much at that point that could stun Sara, but that was it.

"What?" she asked, her voice low. Nate must have seen the anger in her eyes because he took a step back.

"Uh, yeah," he said nervously, "I called her and asked where I could find you and she told me."

Sara exhaled shakily.

"Nate," she said, trying to stay calm, "You cannot just show up and expect to be placed neatly in your daughter's — yes, your _daughter's_ — life, and I hope that you are capable of understanding that. I will call you and we will have a discussion about it, but believe me, it will be happening on my terms. Okay?"

"Okay," he nodded obediently, "Wait, how will you get my number?"

"I'll ask my _sister_ for it," Sara spat out. She took a deep breath, "Go home, Nate."

She turned to go back into her apartment.

"Wait, Sara," he stopped her. She looked back to him, "Who was that guy who answered the door?"

Sara shook her head.

"Go home, Nate."

She went back into the apartment, closing the door on him. Grabbing her phone, she stormed out onto the balcony, closing the sliding glass door behind her.

Feeling all the blood within her boiling, she called her sister.

"Hey, Sara!" Laurel said cheerfully, "Did you all make it home oka—?"

"Did you give Nate Heywood my fucking address?" Sara interrupted her.

Laurel was silent for a moment.

"Um, I might have."

"What the fuck, Laurel?"

"What?" she exclaimed.

"You really didn't see anything wrong with that?"

"I dunno, I kinda just figured he'd forget about it or flake out," Laurel replied.

"Well, he didn't because he just showed up here and demanded to see Avery."

"He did?" she asked, sounding shocked.

"Yeah, Laurel, he did."

"Sara!" Laurel exclaimed, "Why are you so upset! I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Nate, but—"

"Laurel, why don't you get it? It's not just that you didn't tell me, it's your fucking sense of entitlement that makes you think it's okay for you to just do whatever you want, and who cares about how it impacts other people? I thought maybe — just maybe — you might be getting over it, but no. You clearly aren't."

Before Laurel could argue, Sara hung up the phone.

As she reentered the apartment, Leonard was leaving Avery's room, closing the door behind him.

"I can't do this anymore," she told him, frantically shaking her head.

Leonard crossed the room and pulled her into his arms. He could feel her breath, hot against his collarbone, as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"What happened?" he asked, "Where'd he go?"

"I made him leave," she replied, her voice shaking slightly, "He wanted to see Avery, but I said no."

"How'd he get here?"

Sara looked up at him, darkness flashing across her eyes.

"Laurel told him."

"I presume that's who you were on the phone with."

Sara nodded and placed her forehead back on Leonard's chest.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there with you," he said.

Sara shook her head.

"I just want life to be normal for, like, a day. Is that too much to ask for?"

Leonard didn't answer.

"Is Avery asleep?" Sara asked after a second of silence.

"She's waiting for you to read to her," he replied.

Later, when Sara was done reading Avery her bedtime stories, she pulled her daughter into a tight hug, holding her to her chest like when she was a baby.

"Mama, you're squishin' me," Avery said after a minute or two.

"Sorry, baby," she said quietly, loosening her arms, "I love you so much, Ave. You know that, right?"

"Uh-huh," Sara felt her nod against her shirt.

She let go of Avery and got out of the bed.

"Night, Avie," she said, heading for the door.

"Nigh-night, Mommy."

As Sara closed the door, she watched Avery curl into her side, her stuffed bunny held tightly in her fist.

Leonard looked up from the book he was reading.

"She asleep?"

Sara nodded heavily.

Leonard could sense that she was on the verge of saying something, so he stayed quiet.

She made her way over to the couch and sat beside him, staring blankly at the opposite wall.

"I feel like I'm gonna lose her," she finally said, turning to meet his eyes. There was a heaviness in her gaze that he'd never seen before.

"You're not going to lose her," he replied instantly.

"But how do you know?"

"Because I'm not going to let it happen. _No one_ in your life is going to let that happen."

"But what if she _wants_ to be with him?"

"Sara," he said, "You don't know what's going to happen. None of us do, but Avery knows who her mom is. You've been there her entire life, and she knows that. No one could ever replace you."

Sara nodded.

As an afterthought, she added,

"She looks like him."

"Well, she acts like you and that's what matters."

She smiled sadly.

"I'm sorry you have to deal with all this," Sara said, leaning against his side and wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

"Don't be sorry. I'd deal with anything for the two of you."

"I love you," Sara said, "So much."

"I love you too," he replied, kissing the top of her head.

"So what's your next move?" he asked after a few minutes.

"You mean besides never talking to my sister ever again?" she replied. Leonard raised an eyebrow and she sighed, "I don't know."

"Well, you did say at Laurel's that you'd give him a chance if he ever showed up."

"Well I didn't think he actually would!"

"Either way, I guess it's time to put your money where your mouth is."

"So I'm supposed to just let him show up here?"

"Why don't you meet with him somewhere. Get a coffee and figure out what he wants to get out of this."

So that's exactly what she did.

The following week, Sara found herself in a bright coffee shop sitting across from Nate Heywood.

"Uh, so, thanks for getting back to me," he said, "I wasn't sure you would."

"I almost didn't," she replied.

She wasn't lying. Leonard had practically had to force her to call Nate — and that was after she made _him_ get his number from Laurel. She wasn't ready to talk to Laurel yet.

"What do you want, Nate?" she asked, "You actually want to be here?"

"Guilty conscious finally got to me, I guess," he said, and Sara had to fight the urge to strangle the sheepish smile off of his face.

"Okay," she forced out, managing to keep her voice steady, "So what do you want to get out of this."

"I dunno," he shrugged, "Just, y'know, get to know her, I guess…be her dad."

Sara's eyes narrowed.

"Okay, I want to make something very clear. Avery has a dad — no you can't make that face. You can't honestly expect that you can get offended about that. You weren't here. You lost the right to be upset about this when you decided to not be her dad. Showing up now doesn't change anything about that."

Nate didn't respond.

"As I was saying," Sara continued, "Avery has a dad who she loves, and you are not going to take that away from her. I don't even want her to know you're her dad —"

" _What_?"

"—not yet, anyway," she finished, ignoring his protests, "That's the deal."

"C'mon, man," he said, throwing his arms up as he sat further back in his chair, "That doesn't seem fair."

"Fair? You want to talk to me about what's fair? Nate, you dumped me when you found out I was pregnant. You left me — a twenty two-year-old college student — to have a kid all by myself. Does that seem fair to you?"

Nate said nothing, failing to meet her eyes.

"I told you before that this is happening on my terms. If you really want to be part of her life, you'll have to understand that."

"Yeah, sure, fine," he nodded.

"You can manage that?"

"Yeah.

"Okay, good," she said, "Then is…is there anything you want to know about her?"

"Um, yeah, sure. She's four now, right?"

"Yeah. April second."

"So she's in preschool?"

Sara nodded, "Starts her second year in September."

"She likes school?"

"Yeah, she does."

"So what does she, y'know, like to do?"

"Well, she loves books. She can't read quite yet, but we read to her. I'm on the second Harry Potter book with her, and she's reading Narnia with my fiancé. She likes playing board games, and she loves ballet, like, _loves_ it."

"That's awesome," Nate nodded, "She sounds like a happy kid."

"That's the goal," Sara replied.

Nate hesitated for a moment.

"Can I ask about Avery's…dad?" he asked. Sara shrugged, "He's the guy who answered the door when I came to your place?"

"His name is Leonard and we're getting married in October."

"Oh, well, congratulations," he said.

"Thanks."

A few more minutes of obligatory small talk later, they made plans for Nate to meet Avery the following weekend.

"You'll be there," Sara asked him as they got up to leave the coffee shop.

"Yes, I'll be there," he replied. Sara tried her best to ignore the exasperation in his voice.

"Okay, I'll see you then."

"See you."

The next week flew by far to quickly for Sara's liking.  
"Is it too late to back out of this?" Sara asked Leonard as she got dressed.

"Yes," he replied.

"I don't understand why you're so on board with all of this."

"It's the right thing to do," he answered, "Not that I've ever fully endorsed doing the right thing."

That day, Sara was taking Avery to a big playground in the park nearby to meet Nate. She knew it wasn't exactly what Nate had envisioned — he had suggested dinner in a fancy restaurant, further proving Sara that he had no idea how four-year-olds functioned — but so far, he was agreeing to Sara's terms.

"You sure you don't want to come," she joked.

"Hard pass," Leonard replied, "I wish you luck."

"Oh thanks," she deadpanned, the edges of her lips turning up in a smirk.

She walked out of the room and into the hallway.

"Avery," she called, "You ready to go?"

"Uh-huh," Avery replied, coming out of her bedroom. Sara had let her dress herself that day and she had donned a yellow gingham blouse and blue shorts.

"Put your shoes on, let's go."

Sara waited while Avery pulled on her light-up Velcro sneakers. She said goodbye to Leonard (and waited some more while Avery ran to give him a hug) and then they were out the door.

Nate wasn't there when they arrived, which didn't surprise Sara in the slightest (she still hadn't ruled out the possibility that he wouldn't show up at all).

Avery immediately ran off into the wooden playground structure and out of sight while Sara sat at a picnic table beneath a leafy oak tree.

Nate walked up to her about ten minutes later.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi," Sara replied. Nate sat across from her.

"I got...Avery...something," he said, holding up a gift bag that read "Happy Birthday Superstar!" in holographic foil before setting it on the picnic table.

From the bag, he pulled out a large square hardcover book.

"It's the illustrated version of that Harry Potter book you were telling me about."

"Thanks Nate," Sara replied, feeling genuinely impressed with him, "She'll love this."

He put the book back in the gift bag.

"So," he said, "Where is she?"

"She's playing," she replied, nodding towards the playground. Nate turned to look behind him at all the kids playing on the jungle gym. When he apparently couldn't pick out anyone who could potentially be his daughter (and Sara knew that Avery was out of sight, playing on the other side playground past the big yellow slide).

"Oh," Nate said, turning back to face Sara, "Well, are you gonna go get her?"

"No," she shook her head.

"Why not?" he asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"She's playing," Sara repeated, "She'll come over at some point."

"But I thought…" he trailed off, shaking his head, "Never mind."

"So," Sara said after a moment (she thought she knew where Nate's train of thought would have taken him if he had continued), "How've you been?"

"Uh, pretty good," he nodded.

"Last time I saw you, we were in school. How'd that work out? You a cop now?"

"Sort of. A few years in, I was recommended for forensics and kind of turned down that path. When I graduated, I started working in investigations."

"You're a detective?"

"No—well, kind of. I work with witnesses and, like, create suspect profiles and stuff like that. Y'know, the stuff involving communicating with people. So yeah, I work on cases, but not directly, I guess," he answered. Sara nodded, "You?"

"Homicide detective," she answered.

"Ooh, big-shot homicide detective. Good for you."

"Thanks," Sara replied, "Hey, you still living in Star City?"

"Yeah—"

Before either of them could say more Avery ran up to the picnic table.

"Mommy, can you come push me on the swings," she said, apparently not recognizing Nate's presence.

"Yeah, sure," she nodded, "But first can you say hi to someone for me?"

At that point, Avery noticed Nate sitting across from her mother.

"Avery," Sara said, "This is Nate. I know him from school when I was learning how to be a cop. Nate, this is Avery."

"Hey," Nate nodded at her, his expression calmer than Sara had anticipated.

"Hi-hi," Avery chirped. She pulled on Sara's sleeve, "Swings, Mommy."

"Alright," Sara got to her feet, "Can Nate come with us?"

"Uh-huh," she called over her shoulder as she ran for the swings.

"So that's her," Nate said, following Sara across the wood chip-covered playground.

"Yeah, that's her," she nodded, "What d'you think?"

"Uh, it's weird I guess," he answered.

"Oh, okay?" she replied, eyebrows raised.

"No, not in a bad way," he said hastily, "Just, I dunno, I kinda thought she'd be more excited."

"Why should she be?" Sara asked, "I mean, no offense but she has no idea who you are. She doesn't get excited about strangers very often."

"She must have given your fiancé a pretty hard time, then," he said, chuckling.

"Not really," Sara shrugged, "Not at all actually, now I think of it."

Nate let out a huff of air, shaking his head.

"What?" Sara asked, noticing his frustration.

"Nothing," she replied. Sara waited expectantly. A moment later, he continued, "It just seems like you're rubbing this whole thing in my face."

"What thing?"

"That she has such a great relationship with your fiancé."

"You're the one who asked about him!" Sara exclaimed, "C'mon Nate. I know you have these big expectations about everything going perfectly, but that's just not how it's gonna work, so you need to either grow up and deal with or leave."

"Mommy!" Avery called. Sara looked over to see Avery pulling herself onto a swing, "Come _on_!"

"I'm coming," Sara nodded. She turned back to Nate, "This is on you, okay? It's your choice."

* * *

Later that afternoon, Leonard asked how the day had gone.

"It was alright," she said, "For me, at least."

"And for him?" Leonard asked.

Sara shrugged, "I think he was, I dunno…disappointed? I think he had an expectation of this beautiful reunion where he'd suddenly have a great kid in his life, and today he realized that it isn't going to work like that."

"That must have been hard on him."

"Yeah, it was rough for a while but it ended up going okay," she said. Then, she added, "He got her a present."

"That's nice of him," he said diplomatically, "So does he want to see her again?"

"Yes," she replied heavily, letting out a sigh.

"You don't sound thrilled."

"Call me a realist."

Over the next few weeks, Sara let Nate spend some time one-on-one with Avery. He first took her out to get ice cream. Afterwards, Avery had asked Sara why this seemingly random person was taking her out, which Sara had to admit was a valid point. A part of her wished she could tell Avery who Nate was, but she also knew that nothing Nate was doing proved to her that he deserved that, at least not yet. She had explained to Avery that Nate was just an old friend who wanted to get to know her. Thankfully, Avery bought the story.

Since that first outing for ice cream, Nate had been taking Avery once or twice a week and Sara had to admit that it was going pretty well. Nate had apparently resigned himself to the reality that being Avery's dad was harder than just showing up, and he had indeed shown up every time he said he would (and he was almost always on time which Sara knew was an accomplishment for him).

Sara also appreciated the extra time to spend planning the wedding with Leonard without Avery being a distraction (which she undoubtedly would be).

Although Laurel, Felicity and Lisa had all given her the names of wedding planners (Sara chose not to acknowledge that Lisa and Cisco weren't even engaged), she ignored them. She and Leonard just wanted to get married and be with their friends and family.

Lisa and Felicity, however, had different plans. They managed to convince Sara that while an extravagant wedding was admittedly not fitting for the pair, any wedding needs at least a bit of planning. When they got next to nowhere with Leonard and Sara, Lisa enlisted the help of Cisco and the rest of the Flash's team to pull the event together.

"How're you holding up?" Caitlin asked Sara one day as they were all gathered in S.T.A.R. Labs to talk about the wedding.

"With what, the planning?" Sara asked, shifting her weight to one foot as she leaned against the concrete wall.

"No," Caitlin shook her head, "Y'know, this whole thing with Avery's dad. It can't be easy on you."

"Uh, it's okay, I guess," she shrugged, "It's weird, but Nate's actually being pretty good, so that's making it easier."

"That's good."

"Yeah."

"And how's Snart handling all of it?"

"Amazing, although when isn't he? I mean, I know it's a shitty situation for everyone — except Ave. I don't think she even realizes there's a situation at all. But Len's dealing with it really well. I think that's why I want to do all this wedding planning stuff. It's not my thing, but I think Len's kinda into it, even if he hides it under five layers of sarcasm. If it's gonna make him happy, I'll do it in a heartbeat."

"That's really nice," Caitlin said, "You two are really sweet."

"Thanks," Sara smiled.

After a moment, Caitlin said, "He's really into this?"

Sara followed her gaze to where Leonard was standing with Lisa, Iris, and Cisco. His arms were crossed and an expression of boredom was plastered across his face, but beneath the facade of indifference Sara could tell he was actually interested in the color schemes Iris and Lisa were showing him.

"Yeah," Sara nodded, a smile creeping onto her face, "Just don't tell anyone."

"Oh, I wouldn't dare," Caitlin said seriously, mischief gleaming in her eyes.

"I told him I wanted to repaint the bathroom a few weeks ago and I swear to God in one day he was showing me paint samples."

"No kidding," she chuckled.

"Sara," Iris called, "We need your input here."

"On what?" Sara asked, approaching the table.

"The first step to planning any wedding is the color scheme," Cisco cut in before Iris could say anything. He gestured dramatically at the palettes and swatches strewn across the glass tabletop.

"Really," Sara asked dryly, "Where'd you learn so much about weddings?"

"Magazines," he replied obviously, "Duh."

"C'mon Sara," Iris said, "Help us pick colors. That's the hardest part. Everything after that is a piece of cake."

Cisco scoffed.

"Fine," Sara said, She took a moment to look over everything, "Most of these color combinations look the same."

Cisco threw his hands up in exasperation.

"She's hopeless! These people are hopeless!"

"Relax, Cisco," Caitlin said, nudging her friend. She pointed to a small bulletin board displaying five pinned paint swatches, "I like this one. Look, the orange and plum and green will look really nice with all the fall leaves, and that shade of blue kind of makes me think of the cold gun."

Sara glanced at Leonard who was eyeing the board with a look of genuine consideration on his face.

"I like it," Sara nodded.

"I guess," Leonard sighed, although Sara noticed that his agreement came very quickly.

"There we go, Cisco," Caitlin said, "How hard was that?"

"Not hard at all," he said, shooting Sara and Leonard a pointed look, "Now, I'm assuming neither of you have any interest in flowers or table settings or any of that —"

"Nope," Sara said, just as Leonard said, "Not at all."

" _So_ ," Cisco continued, "we can totally take care of it for you, I swear."

"Since when did the Flash's team double as wedding planners," Leonard asked skeptically.

"We don't," Wells said stoically. He'd spent the last hour monitoring various feeds, occasionally sending Barry off to fight a crime or two.

"Seriously," Cisco said, ignoring Harry, "We can do it. It's been my dream to plan a wedding."

"Your _dream_?" Caitlin repeated, "It's really your _dream_ to plan a wedding?"

"As of half an hour ago, yes it is," he replied defensively.

"You know what," Sara said, "If you want to take over all this, I'm game. Len?"

"I'm fine with it if you are," he replied.

"Awesome!" Cisco exclaimed, punching the air, "This is gonna be the most kickass wedding of all time."

"That's the goal," Sara nodded, her eyebrows raised, "So we can go, then?"

"Wait!" Iris said, getting to her feet, "You're forgetting the most important thing!"

"What?" Sara asked.

"The dress!" she replied enthusiastically. When Sara didn't respond, she said, "Oh come on! You can't tell me you aren't even a little excited about picking out a dress!" She crossed the room and grabbed Sara's wrists, "We'll go to boutiques and get drunk on champagne and it'll be amazing and you'll be so beautiful!"

Sara looked to the sky in an attempt to hide the smile that had crept its way onto her face.

"See!" Iris exclaimed, "You do want to! Oh my God, it'll be so much fun. You and me and Cait and Lis' can go, and maybe Felicity will even come from Star City and it'll be like a bachelorette party."

"Sure," Sara sighed, "That actually sounds like fun."

"Yay!"

"Speaking of parties," Barry said, "Snart, don't think you're getting out of a bachelor party."

"Absolutely not," Leonard replied immediately.

"Alrighty then."

* * *

A couple weeks later, Iris' long-awaited dress-fitting day had arrived. Sara had to admit that she was looking forward to it. With the assistance of Lisa, Sara had already chosen bridesmaids' dresses and Avery's flower girl dress. The only one left was her own.

Iris, Lisa, and Caitlin were taking her to a bridal shop in downtown Central City, and Felicity had even promised to travel in from Star City for the day. A part of Sara wanted Avery to be there too, but a messy toddler in a room filled with white dresses didn't seem like the greatest idea. Besides, Nate was heading back to Star City at the end of the week and he wanted another opportunity to spend time with his daughter before he had to leave.

He was bringing her to another playground for the afternoon, a brand new one that had been built in the aftermath of the Markov device explosion.

They had all gone out to lunch and then headed towards the bridal shop.

"Aw, this place is so cute," Felicity said, pulling Sara by the arm through the door, "I wish I'd known about it sooner."

"I was gonna say," Sara said, "I hope I'm not stealing your thunder with all this wedding stuff, considering yours is in a couple weeks, but considering most of this is your idea, I'm just assuming I don't have to."

A middle-aged woman in a sleek pantsuit and an unfortunate shade of lipstick approached them.

"Hi!" Felicity said, "Yes, we're here to look at dresses."

"Hello," she said, "You must be my 4 o'clock. Welcome! Are you the bride?"

"Unfortunately, no. She is," Felicity replied, pulling Sara forward by the elbow, "This is Sara. She's one of the most beautiful people in the world and she's marrying the most perfect man ever. Like, _perfect_. It's actually kind of unfair. Anyway, we need a dress that is as beautiful as she is. Can you do that for us?"

The saleswoman was silent for a moment, a slightly overwhelmed expression on her face. She turned to Sara.

"Congratulations," she said, "My name's Erin and I'd be happy to help you find your perfect dress. Follow me."

She led them further into the store, through a lavender curtain, and into a small room. One wall was entirely floor-to-ceiling mirrors and there was a white circular platform in the middle of the floor. A little table displaying champagne and cupcakes was pressed up against another wall. Most of the remaining space was filled with a small couch and a couple matching chairs.

"Oh my god, this is so cute," Caitlin said as Iris and Felicity made a beeline for the champagne.

"Why don't you all make yourselves comfortable while the bride and I go check out some dresses," Erin suggested. She led Sara through another curtain into the showroom. What must have been dresses hung on racks in plastic bags or on upholstered busts.

"Did you have anything in mind already?" Erin asked.

"I dunno," Sara sighed, "I've never really been a big _dress_ person. I think the last time I wore one was my dad's wedding, like, three years ago. I just want something comfortable and, y'know, not crazy over-the-top or anything like that."

"Okay," Erin said thoughtfully, "I have a couple dresses in mind."

Erin led Sara round the storeroom, occasionally pulling dresses off of the metal racks, and then back to a brightly lit dressing room.

"I have a decent variety of styles here," she said, hanging them on a hook, "Something tells me you aren't gonna be too picky."

"I'm not," Sara said, "but they are."

She gestured in the direction of her friends, who she could hear laughing just a bit too loud to not be alcohol-induced.

Sara tried on several dresses that just weren't _her_. They were pretty (Felicity was practically in tears at each one), but they weren't right. Sara knew she wasn't picky, but she had to admit she'd become a just a little invested in finding that right one.

"Let me go pick one out," Felicity said, getting to her feet and heading for the showroom. Erin warily followed her.

"I think this one is fine," Caitlin said, gesturing to the dress Sara was wearing.

"It's just so…fluffy," Sara replied, pulling at the tulle skirt, "I wish Ave was here. She'd love it."

"That reminds me; how're you doing?" Lisa asked, "With all this Nate stuff, I mean. Avery's with him now, right?"

"Yeah," Sara nodded, fiddling with the dress' itchy sleeves, "Uh, it's getting better. Avery seems to like him, so that's good."

"Do you think you'll tell her he's her dad?" Caitlin asked.

"I dunno," she shrugged, finally sliding the sleeves off her shoulders, "If he keeps doing what he's doing, I don't see why not, but I think he needs more time. _I_ need more time. Is that selfish?"

"No," Iris said, "Not at all. This is a huge change — for Avery and for you. You deserve the time to, y'know, make the adjustment."

Sara nodded.

"Where are they now?" Lisa asked.

"He took her to that new playground, and then I think he's taking her out for ice cream."

"That sounds fun," she replied.

"Yeah, I think she's more excited for the ice cream than him," Sara said, "Not that I'd ever tell him that."

They all laughed. Sara was about to say more when Felicity threw aside the lavender curtain.

"Sara," she said in a sing-song voice, "I found a dress!"

"Really?" Sara said, trying to catch a glimpse of the dress through its matte bag.

"Yes, and I have a really good feeling about it, so go put it on."

She thrusted the bag into Sara's hands and nudged her towards the dressing room.

Felicity had good taste. It was a gorgeous dress, simple, with a white lining and a layer of soft lace. It had an open back, and the fabric clung tight to her skin, loosening into a subtle fishtail skirt at a slit reaching her knee. The lace traveled up the front of the dress to the base of her neck, revealing a low sweetheart neckline underneath.

"I'm coming in, Sara," Felicity said, moments before the curtain parted and she stepped inside the dressing room.

She let out a little gasp when she saw the dress.

"Oh my God, Sara, this dress is amazing!"

"You have good taste," Sara told her.

"You like it?"

Sara nodded.

"This is it," Felicity said seriously, "This is the dress. C'mon, let's go show everyone."

She poked her head out of the dressing room.

"All of you you close your eyes," she said, "We think we got the one, and you all need the ultimate reveal."

She waited a beat and then led Sara out of the dressing room, helping her step onto the platform and smoothing out the lace skirt.

"Okay. Open your eyes."

Sara was met with a chorus of gasps.

"Oh, Sara," Iris said breathlessly, "It's so beautiful."

"Right!" Felicity exclaimed, "It looks so good on her — I mean, everything looks good on her, but this dress looks ... _so… good_ on her."

"And it'll look good on Len's floor, too," Iris said, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Are you hitting on me for Leonard?" Sara asked, trying and failing to hide the smile on her face.

"Yes."

"So is this it?" Caitlin asked, "Is this the dress?"

"Yes," Felicity answered for her.

"Absolutely," Iris nodded.

"Do _you_ like it, Sara?" Caitlin asked.

Sara turned to face the mirror, eyeing the dress again.

"Yeah," she said truthfully, "I do."

"Yay!" Felicity exclaimed.

"We did it!" Iris pumped her fists in the air.

The two started to do a happy little dance that Sara was sure wouldn't be happening had it not been for the champagne they'd consumed (it didn't take long for them to realize there was also champagne in the cupcakes).

"Hate to interrupt you, but your phone's ringing, Sara," Caitlin said. Sara extracted her phone from the pocket of her jacket.

"It's Len," she said, looking at the number on the screen, "Gimme a second."

There was a chorus of "awws" as Sara ducked into the dressing room.

"Hey," she said as she answered the phone, "What's up?"

"We have a bit of a problem," Leonard said, his voice holding both apprehension and anger.

"What do you mean?" she asked. She heard crying in the background, "Is that Avery? What's wrong? She's not supposed to be home yet."

"I know."

"Where's Nate? What'd he do?"

"He's here," Leonard answered, "You should probably ask him what happened."

"Okay," Sara nodded, "Gimme, like, a half hour."

She hung up a phone and pushed through the curtain.

"Sorry to end the fun," she told her friends, "but there's something going on at home that I gotta get to."

"Aww why?" Iris said.

Sara shook her head tiredly.

"I guess Avery's upset, and Nate has something to do with it," she answered, "Len wants me to hear it from Nate himself, which, knowing Len — and Nate — means it was probably pretty bad."

"You seem relatively calm about all this," Caitlin commented.

"Comes with the job," she replied dryly.

Felicity stood to hug Sara.

"I love you so much," she said, "You handle stress so beautifully."

"Thank you?" Sara replied, her eyebrows furrowing.

She pulled away and looked to all of her friends.

"Thanks for doing this. I actually had a lot of fun."

"So did we," Lisa said. The rest nodded in agreement, "Look, if you need to get back home, we can take care of everything here."

"Really?"

"Yeah, totally," Iris agreed, "Go."

Sara gave each of her friends another hug, changed back into her normal clothes, and then left the bridal shop.

She was back home in twenty five minutes, and opened the door to the sound of Avery crying. She followed the noise to see Leonard holding her, standing by the back of the couch. Her arms were locked around his neck, her face hidden in the fabric of his shirt as Leonard comfortingly ran a hand up and down her back. He looked up when Sara entered the apartment.

She stood in the doorway for a moment, eyes locked with Leonard's.

Leonard could see that she was exhausted, with this day, with this whole _Nate_ experience, and he couldn't blame her.

He tipped his head towards the couch and Sara looked to see Nate sitting with his head in his hands, palms pressing into his closed eyes. She let out a heavy sigh and stepped into the apartment, closing the door behind her.

"Nate," she said, walking around the couch, "What happened."

"It's not a big deal!" he protested.

"Wrong answer," Sara instantly replied, gesturing to Avery who was still in tears, " _Clearly_ the wrong answer."

Nate let out a groan.

"Look, all that happened is that I was pushing her on the swings and she said I was doing it wrong and I should do it more like her dad, and then I got mad and accidentally told her that I was her real dad."

Sara's face hardened.

"You _what_?"

"I told her tha—"

"I heard you," she snapped, "I can't believe you! I can't believe you told her when I explicitly asked you not to!"

"I couldn't help it!"

"Bullshit! Nate, that can't fly if you want to be in her life! You need to understand that everything you do has to be for her. You have to be acting in her best interest!"

"Who says that knowing I'm her dad isn't in her best interest?"

"Look at her, Nate! Look at her!" Sara watched Nate's head turn to glance at Avery and then back to her, "Does that make you think you acted in her best interest?"

He didn't answer.

"I don't know what you want me to do," he finally said.

"I want you to go home," she told him, "and wait while I decide what to do."

Nate nodded. He got to his feet.

"You'll call me?"

"Yes, I'll call you."

He nodded again and headed for the door. When it closed behind him, Sara turned to Avery and Leonard.

"You guys okay?" she asked heavily. Leonard nodded pressing a kiss into Avery's curls. He passed her over to her mother.

"Sorry I wasn't here," Sara told him, shifting Avery's weight in her arms. He instantly shook his head.

"How could you have known?" After a moment, he asked, "Did you have a nice time dress shopping?"

"Yeah," she nodded, sitting on the couch with Avery in her lap, her tears just starting to subside.

"Did you find a dress?"

"I did," she replied, a hint of a smirk on her lips. She leaned closer to Avery, "Did you hear that, Ave? I found my wedding dress today."

Avery went quiet. She looked up at her mother, a little bit of the usual sparkle returning to her eyes.

"You did?"

"Uh-huh," she replied, "I can show you a picture of it, but you can't show Daddy. He can't see it until the wedding. It's a secret."

Avery's face slowly fell.

"Mommy," she said, "Is Nate really my dad?"

Sara felt the air in her lungs catch momentarily.

"Yeah, Avie, he is."

"Where was he?"

"I guess he just wasn't ready to be your dad," Sara replied.

"He's ready now?"

"I think he's trying."

"Mama," she said, lowering her voice to a whisper.

"What?" Sara asked, tipping her head down to hear her better.

"Can Lenny still be my Daddy?"

"Yes, Ave, he can be your dad too."

"Promise?"

"Promise."


	20. Chapter 20

**So apparently it's been a whopping three months since my last update. Whoops. Here's a super long chapter to (hopefully) make up for it.**

* * *

After the incident at the playground, Sara saw Nate one more time before he left for Star City.

He stopped by the apartment at Sara's request to talk about how to move forward.

"Where's Avery?" Nate asked.

"Len took her to the park for the afternoon," she told him, "I wanted to talk with you one-on-one. Sit."

Nate took a seat in the upholstered armchair while Sara sat on the couch.

There was a beat of silence before Sara spoke.

"You know you crossed the line, right?" she asked him, "I had one request: that you didn't tell Avery you're her dad, and you couldn't even manage that."

"Look, I'm really sorry," he said, leaning forwards, his hands clasped as he balanced his elbows on his knees, "I swear it was a mistake, I didn't know Avery would get so upset and I'm sorry."

Sara exhaled heavily.

"Thank you," she nodded, "I appreciate you saying that."

"You know, I was a little surprised you even asked me to come back," he said.

"Believe me, it's not because I wanted to," Sara replied. Nate's face fell slightly, "But it would be wrong of me to keep you out of Avery's life, especially now she knows who you are."

"Thank you," Nate nodded vigorously.

"I guess now I need to know what you want to happen next," she continued, "I know it's hard because we live in different cities, and she's starting school again soon, but would you maybe want to try taking her overnight or something?"

"Yeah, totally," he answered, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

"Okay, well, my best friend's wedding is in a couple weeks so we'll be spending a few days in Star City. We could do it then?"

"Definitely," he nodded, "That'd be awesome."

He didn't stay for too much longer before he left to catch his train. Sara was glad for the reason to see him go.

She always felt drained when she spent time with Nate. It made her wonder how she'd actually dated him for so long — almost a year, believe it or not. He'd just been so charming and seemed genuinely interested in her, although knowing that the person she'd been with before him was Oliver Queen made her think that perhaps her definition of those two qualities had been skewed at the time.

She meant it when she said that she wanted Nate to have a chance to be in Avery's life, but it certainly wasn't easy on her.

It made her think about Leonard. He'd been handling everything so well — dropping Avery off with Nate when Sara couldn't (or didn't want to), offering his genuine unbiased opinions when she needed to make decisions, not punching Nate in the face when he was being a jackass (which was often) — and it made her forget that this couldn't be easy on him either.

She knew his experience with his own father had somewhat dissuaded him from being one himself, but the relationship he'd formed with Avery had proven him wrong. Sara could tell that he loved being Avery's dad, and she was sure it was uncomfortable at the very least to have some of that taken away.

Not that he'd ever tell her any of this. Sara had long since learned that Leonard tended to avoid sharing his feelings if he didn't have to. If she sensed something was wrong, she had to dig it out of him. She knew that some people wouldn't see that as an appealing quality, but Sara usually didn't mind. She just didn't like to think he was suffering alone.

Except he wasn't alone. Sara had told him time and time again that she would go to the ends of the Earth for him, and no matter how many times he rolled her eyes when she said it, she knew he believed her.

A few weeks after Sara's conversation with Nate, they all headed to Star City for Felicity and Oliver's wedding.

"I feel like we should just move here," Leonard commented as they sped past the 'Entering Star City' sign.

"Don't even joke about that," Sara replied, shaking her head warningly.

Not too long later, they had checked into their hotel room, though they didn't stick around too long before they headed out once again.

They successfully made it through the rehearsal dinner (Leonard generously left early to put Avery to bed and Sara successfully avoided an interaction with her sister) and they woke early the next morning to prepare for the wedding.

Sara was Felicity's maid of honor, so after a quick breakfast with Avery and Len, she headed off to the wedding venue to help Felicity get ready.

Getting everyone's hair and makeup done took an astounding four hours, including the times Sara left to see how Oliver and the groomsmen were doing (they were fine, watching a Star City Rockets game that _might_ have also detained Sara for a half hour).

Finally, two hours before the ceremony began, it was time for Felicity to put on her dress.

"You look so beautiful, baby!" Donna Smoak gasped when Felicity emerged from behind a curtain in her wedding dress.

"Thanks mom," she said, a hint of exasperation in her voice as her mother hugged her.

Felicity did look beautiful. She had chosen a ball gown style dress, a contrast from the tight-fitting clothes she usually opted for. It was strapless, with a lace bodice and crochet details on the tulle skirt and train. Rhinestone detailing along the waist complemented the gems pinning up her hair.

Her bridesmaids, Sara, Thea, Iris, and Elena, were in long dresses of a deep forest green color. There was a wide satin band around the waist and a tall slit up on side of the skirt. The halter neckline was cut low, the strap narrowing to reveal an open back.

"You look great, Lis," Sara nodded.

"Are you sure?" Felicity asked nervously, looking at her reflection in the full length mirror.

"Yes," they all reassured her.

"When are pictures?" she asked, smoothing out the tulle skirt of her dress.

"Five minutes," Sara told her, "The guys are ready. We can head over now if you want."

Felicity nodded.

* * *

An hour later, when pictures were done, Sara stopped by the hotel to see how Leonard and Avery were doing.

She entered the room to see Leonard standing by the window, straightening his tie. He looked over when the door opened.

"You ready?" Sara asked as she walked towards him.

"Aren't you supposed to be with Felicity?" he asked.

"Everyone's getting their makeup and hair touched-up before the ceremony starts," she replied walking further into the room, "Thought I might stop by and see how things are going here."

Sara tugged lightly on the lapels of his jacket. She'd never seen him in a suit before. He was always in his dark jeans and heavy leather jacket (she'd noticed that the blue parka hadn't made an appearance in a while, but if because of the mid-August heat or because he was ready to put that part of his life behind him, she wasn't sure).

Today, he was in a suit of a deep navy blue color. Underneath the jacket was a grey vest and a white dress shirt.

"You clean up nice," she said, watching him tuck the red tie beneath his vest.

"So do you," he replied, his eyes sweeping up and down her green dress.

"Thanks," Sara smirked, "Felicity has good taste."

"That she does."

A moment later, Avery bounded out of the bathroom in the outfit Sara had picked out for her: a halter sundress that tied into a bow around the nape of her neck. It was a longer length than Sara would normally opt for to hide the scrapes and bruises Avery had acquired during long summer days spent on the playground, and printed on the pale blue fabric were large flowers of navy blue, lilac, red, and gold hues.

"Mommy, you look so pretty!" Avery exclaimed.

"Thank you, Avie," Sara smiled, "Do you like your dress?"

"Yeah!" she said, spinning in a circle to make the long crepe-y skirt flair out, "Look Mama, I match Daddy!"

She pointed to a navy blue flower on her dress before frantically poking at Leonard's leg.

"I can see that," she nodded, smiling. She glanced at her phone, "I should get back to Felicity soon. And you guys should start heading over too."

Leonard nodded.

"Do you want me to bring Ave's bag for tonight?" he asked.

Sara thought for a moment, "I'll take it. I can leave it in the back room of the wedding place until the reception."

"Is the wedding soon," Avery asked as Sara found her backpack wedged between one of the beds and a side table.

"Uh-huh," Sara nodded, "Ave, you know I'm not gonna be sitting with you during it, right?" Avery nodded, "You're gonna sit with Daddy and behave and not make a lot of noise?"

"Yup," she chirped.

"Good," she said, "Okay, so I'm gonna go now. Be good for Daddy, okay?"

"Okay."

Sara kissed Leonard, and planted another in Avery's curls and then headed back out the door.

* * *

About thirty minutes later, Leonard and Avery were sitting in ornately carved wooden chairs, waiting for the ceremony to begin.

Oliver and Felicity had chosen to have their wedding in the glass-walled conservatory of a manor on the outskirts of Star City. Even Leonard could appreciate how beautiful it was, with the afternoon sunlight shining into the room and greenery growing up the walls.

"Hey."

Leonard turned in his seat to see Laurel standing in the aisle next to him. Avery turned with him, her face brightening when she saw who had spoken.

"Auntie Laurel!" she exclaimed, climbing over Leonard's legs to reach the aisle.

"Hi Avery!" Laurel said, lifting her up into a hug, "Are you excited to see the wedding?"

"Yeah!"

Laurel put Avery back on the ground.

"How're you, Leonard?" she asked.

"I'm good," he nodded, "and you?"

"Uh, well," she began, "I'm at the wedding of my ex-boyfriend — alone — because my husband is the best man, so…confused would probably be a good word for it."

"Well, it'll be over soon," he amended.

"Sara's in the wedding?" she asked him. Leonard nodded, "She still hasn't talked to me since…y'know."

"I think she needs time," he replied. She nodded.

Laurel glanced over her shoulder to see Quentin waving for her.

"I should go," she said, "I think the ceremony's gonna start. Maybe I'll see you at the reception?"

"Maybe."

Laurel smiled, waved to Avery, and turned away from them.

"Daddy?" Avery asked. Leonard looked over to her, "Is Mommy and Auntie Laurel fighting?"

"Yes."

"How come?"

"That's what sisters do sometimes."

"Does Lisa fight with you?"

"Sometimes. More a few years ago than now."

"How come d'you fight?"

"Lisa isn't always the best at making decisions."

"All rise," the officiant said a moment later, his voice carrying across the room.

Leonard stood up along with everyone around him.

"Daddy, I can't see," Avery said, tugging on his sleeves. Leonard lifted her under her arms and stood her on a chair.

"Good?"

"Uh-huh," she nodded, "Where's Mommy?"

"She's coming soon," he replied.

A door at the back of the banquet hall opened and Felicity's mother, Donna, started down the aisle.

Donna was wearing a summery floral-patterned dress with a neckline he knew Felicity wouldn't appreciate.

Leonard had gotten the chance to meet Donna Smoak at the rehearsal dinner the night before. She seem to be quite a foil to her daughter, brazen and high-strung, yet still likable. She was, unsurprisingly, infatuated with Avery and was very disappointed to hear she wouldn't be in the wedding (Felicity had initially wanted Avery to be her flower girl, but when she found out that Leonard and Sara were getting married, she insisted Avery wait to be flower girl for her parents' wedding).

Donna made it to the end of the aisle and took her seat right in front of the alter.

A moment later, Oliver appeared beside the officiant, dressed in a sleek black tuxedo. He shook the officiant's hand, straightened his jacket, and turned to face the wooden door at the back of the room.

The door opened again and one by one each of Felicity's bridesmaids made their way down the aisle, arm-in-arm with a groomsman.

Oliver's sister Thea walked with her boyfriend Roy, followed by Iris and Barry. Last was John Diggle and a young, short woman named Elena.

Leonard was impressed with himself for knowing who all of these people were without a formal introduction to any of them, but Sara talked to Felicity _a lot_ , and he would be lying if he said he hadn't picked up on some of the family drama, and there was certainly a lot of it.

The "drama" that went down in his own household had been of a much different variety than hers, and he found it intriguing to see a normal family experience their own trials (although as more time went by, the more he was convinced this was not a normal family).

"Look!" Avery exclaimed, her voice at a volume clearly meant to be a whisper, "Mama!"

Leonard looked where she was pointing and saw Sara starting her walk down the aisle. Tommy Merlyn, Oliver's best man, was by her side. Sara was smiling good-naturedly, quietly laughing at something Tommy had said.

"Mommy!" Avery said, her voice not quite a yell, but certainly audible.

Sara looked over as she reached their row of seats.

"Hi Avie," she whispered, her eyes twinkling as she waved.

Sara continued down the aisle and soon Felicity came into view.

"Look," Leonard murmured, lifting Avery up so she could see over the heads of the other wedding attendants. When Avery saw Felicity in her wedding dress, walking arm-in-arm with her father, she let out a gasp.

"Daddy, look, she looks like a princess!" she said, gripping his shoulders and craning her neck to see better. Avery waved to Felicity. She glanced over, smiling in their direction when she saw them.

A minute later, she reached the alter and everyone took their seats.

"Daddy?" Avery whispered, tugging on Leonard's sleeve, "Is Mommy gonna look as beautiful as Auntie Lissy when she marries you?"

"Your mom is beautiful all the time," he told her, his voice quiet.

"But she doesn't wear wedding dresses all the time," she responded.

"That's right She doesn't do that," he amended.

"And wedding dresses make you a gazillion times even more beautiful."

"I think that's your answer, then."

The wedding went by relatively quickly, and mostly consisted of Leonard explaining the ceremony to Avery.

"Why's Ollie talkin'?"

"He's giving his vows."

"What are vows?"

"He's promising to Felicity that he'll love her forever."

"Is he gonna?"

"I hope."

"Why's Lissy talking now?"

"She's giving her vows."

"Why?"

"Same reason Oliver did."

"She's gonna love him forever?"

"Theoretically."

"What's theoretically?"

The ceremony didn't drag on like Leonard suspected, and soon Oliver and Felicity were making their way back down the aisle together.

Ten minutes later, they had all reconvened in the manor's formal banquet hall decorated in shades of cream and gold.

"It looks like a princess castle!" Avery had exclaimed when they first entered the room.

Leonard had been to few weddings throughout the course of his life, and this one was certainly the most extravagant. He rarely interacted with polite society (besides stealing from them, but that part of his life was over). It was interesting to him to see this lifestyle, this lavishness, when it was considered by many in the room as normal. He had never been in the same room as Oliver Queen before, and although he didn't seem quite as clueless as Tommy Merlyn, he gave off a similar air of ignorance, a life of affluence preventing him from being able to fully recognize all he had.

He didn't participate in much of the wedding festivities, choosing instead to sit and observe. He watched Oliver and Felicity's first dance, set to Elvis Presley's "Can't Help Falling in Love" (which was number eight on a list of common first dance songs, something Leonard had looked up just to spite Sara, who thought it was sweet). As they were finishing up dinner, the toasts began.

Donna went first, her too long and overly revealing speech ending with her in tears and Felicity with her head in her hands.

Tommy went next, talking about the childhood he'd spent with Oliver, and how they had been together through all the important stages of their lives (it was a touching toast, Leonard had to admit, although he figured Laurel was behind at least most of it).

Sara was last. She hadn't prepared a toast, at least not a fully written-out one like the other two — it wasn't her style, but she ended up delivering a lovely speech about her friendship with Felicity, supporting each other when no one else would.

"How was that for impromptu," she whispered gleefully as she returned to her seat. She gave Avery a high five.

When everyone finished eating, the dance floor was opened up to the rest of the wedding attendants.

"Let's go dance, Len," Sara said, nudging his arm with her shoulder as she nodded to the dance floor.

"Are you watching the time?" Leonard asked Sara, ignoring her request.

"No," she replied, her expression blank.

"Nate's gonna be here in three minutes."

"Shit," she said, recognition dawning across her face, "Where's Avery?"

Leonard tipped his head to the side. Sara looked over to see Avery playing with the flower girl, a cupcake in each hand and frosting all over her face.

"Oh God," Sara said closing her eyes momentarily before calling for her daughter, "Avery, c'mere!"

Avery looked up and then ran over to her mother.

"You're double-fisting cupcakes, my love," Sara told her, ruffling her curls.

"They're good!" she chirped, taking an impossibly large bite out of a cupcake and smearing even more lilac-colored frosting on her cheeks.

"I don't doubt it," Sara said, attempting to wipe the frosting off with a napkin, "but we gotta go. Your dad's waiting for you."

Avery's face fell.

"But I don't wanna go. I wanna stay at the party."

"I know, but you promised you'd stay with him tonight, and you're gonna do fun things there too."

"Can he come to the party?"

"Uh…no. C'mon, say bye to Daddy and then we have to go."

While Avery hugged Leonard, Sara found Avery's backpack hanging off of her chair. She held it out for Avery and watched as she pulled her arms through the straps.

"Ready?" she asked. Avery nodded. Sara took her hand and led her into the foyer of the manor.

Nate was waiting for them, sitting on an upholstered couch. He stood up when he saw Sara and Avery approaching.

"Hey," he said, meeting Sara's eyes, "You look nice."

"Thanks," she replied, "You ready?"

"Yeah, totally," he nodded.

"Well, here she is," Sara said. She looked at Avery, "You ready to go?"

Avery nodded. Sara looked back up at Nate.

"Okay, so basically everything she needs is in her backpack. She's eaten — sort of. It was mostly cupcakes so she still needs dinner. She's not a very picky eater, so she'll probably be fine with whatever works for you. Her bedtime is at eight, but if you wanted, you could keep her up a little later."

Nate nodded.

"Okay," he said, "Sounds good."

"And if you need anything, just text me or call."

"Got it," he nodded, "You ready to go, Avery?"

Avery nodded, not letting go of her mother's hand. Sara crouched down and pulled her into a hug. She felt Avery's arms wind around her neck, her fingers gripping her hair.

"You're gonna have fun, okay?" Sara whispered into Avery's curls, "I promise."

She felt Avery nod.

Sara stood up and gave her a little nudge forward.

"Have fun," she said as they started heading for the front door that was being propped open with a barrel filled with purple flowers. Avery turned and waved as they passed through the doorway. Soon they were down the porch steps and out of sight.

Sara took a deep breath and then headed back for the banquet hall.

"Well that was shitty," she said when she returned to the table and saw Leonard in the same place she'd left him.

"She didn't want to go?" he asked as Sara sat in the chair next to him.

"Not really," she replied, "She seemed kind of…I dunno, uncomfortable?" She met his eyes, "Was this a mistake?"

"I really don't know," he answered. Sara let out a sigh, leaning over to rest the side of her head on his shoulder.

A moment later, Felicity came up behind them.

"Did Nate pick Avery up?" she asked. Sara nodded as she sat up.

"Just now."

"Aw, that sucks," Felicity said, leaning over to hug her from behind, her arms wrapping around Sara's shoulders, "I mean, I'm sure she'll have fun with him, but…y'know, it can't be easy."

Felicity stood and walked around their chairs.

"But look on the bright side," she said, gesturing around them, "You're at a fancy party. The booze is free, for you at least, and you don't have a kid to take care of."

"She has a point," Leonard agreed.

"When have you ever looked on the bright side of anything," Sara grumbled.

"Cute," he smirked.

"You're seriously both encouraging me to, what, get hammered on my night off?" Sara said skeptically, "Really?"

"Yes," they said simultaneously.

"You deserve it," Felicity added seriously.

Sara raised her eyebrows thoughtfully.

"Fine," she said, "I'm gonna go get a drink — or two — and then _you_ ," she poked Leonard's chest, "are gonna dance with me even if I have to drag you out onto the floor."

She stood, feeling his eyes on her as she headed for the bar.

She ordered two shots of an alcohol she hadn't had since right after Avery was born (and then never again — waking up hungover sucked, but waking up hungover at dawn to a screaming newborn was damn near prison torture) and a whiskey for Leonard. She downed one of the shots before even leaving the bar. Just as she picked up the other two glasses to head back to the table, she saw her sister making her way towards her. She drank the other shot, wondering briefly if she should order another before Laurel was standing in front of her.

"Hey Sara," she said.

"Laurel," Sara said, forcing a friendly smile onto her face, "You look nice."

"So do you," she replied, "As always. Your wedding invitation came in the mail yesterday. I was a little surprised to see it."

"Yeah, well, Lisa told me not to just send emails," she joked.

"I'm serious," Laurel said, "I was sort of surprised to see you actually invited me."

"Well, you are my sister," Sara shrugged, "Of course I'd invite you to my wedding."

"So you aren't still mad at me about Nate?" she asked.

"I think you're smart enough to know it's gonna take more than a month and half for me to get over that," she said, lifting the glass of whiskey meant for Leonard to her lips.

Sara couldn't tell if it was disappointment or resignation she saw in Laurel's eyes.

"Okay, well, I'm sorry, I guess," she said, "I hope he's not causing you guys a ton of trouble."

"No, none at all," Sara said sweetly. She ordered two more shots for herself and another whiskey for Len and then walked away from her sister.

"That looked less than amicable," Leonard commented when Sara returned to the table, accepting the glass of whiskey.

"Let's just say Felicity is lucky I love her so much because I would _love_ to beat some sense into my sister."

* * *

Felicity and Leonard were ultimately unsuccessful at getting Sara completely hammered, but when they returned to the hotel room at nearly eleven o'clock, her wide smile and uncharacteristic giggle were reminding Leonard of when Sara had to take pain meds for her bullet wound to the stomach several months ago.

It didn't last long.

"I hope Ave's doing okay," she said morosely, pulling off her silver heels and letting them drop onto the carpeted floor.

"I'm sure she's fine," Leonard reassured her, loosening his tie, "She usually has fun with him."

"I know," she nodded, "but she's never spent the night with anyone before."

"That's not true," Leonard replied, "She sleeps at your mom's house all time." Sara opened her mouth to argue but he continued, "and when you had to stay at S.T.A.R. Labs for a few weeks after the warehouse incident, Lisa stayed with her."

"She trusts them though," Sara argued, turning away from him and pulling her hair over her shoulder. She was still as he unzipped the back of her green dress, "She hasn't known Nate for very long, maybe not long enough to spend a whole night with him."

Sara went into the bathroom, leaving the door open to hear Leonard's response. as she changed into a t-shirt and shorts.

"You left _me_ alone with her when you only knew me for a month," he said, "and I'm not actually her dad."

"Yeah, but that's because she was, like, obsessed with you," she replied, "She trusted you before I did."

"She has good taste," he replied, and Sara could practically _hear_ his smirk. She rolled her eyes.

She picked up a hairbrush off the counter and went back into the hotel room where Leonard was now in a t-shirt and sweatpants, sitting on one of the queen-size beds with a book.

"I just feel like I'm rushing into it," she said, shrugging as she sat cross-legged next to him.

Sara's phone, resting on the bedside table, starting to ring.

"Who is it?" Sara asked, starting to run the hairbrush through her hair.

Leonard, closer to the phone than her, leaned over to read the name on the illuminated screen.

"Speak of the devil," he said, handing the phone to her, "It's Nate."

"What does he want?" Sara asked, then held the phone up to her ear, "Nate, what do you want?"

"Avery's saying she doesn't feel good," Nate replied.

"Okay," Sara replied, slowing down so she could process what Nate was telling her, "What's she saying is wrong?"

"She says she has a sore throat."

"Did you give her Tylenol or cough medicine or something?"

"No. I don't have any kid's medicine."

Sara closed her eyes, "You agreed to take Avery for the night and you don't have children's medicine? Where do you have her sleeping, the floor?"

"Sara," Leonard said warningly, but when she looked to him, there was a hint of a smirk on his lips.

"Look, take a regular Tylenol pill and cut it in half," she told Nate, "That'll work. Oh, and she can't swallow pills because she's four, so you have to crush it and put it in ice cream or something and have her eat that."

"Okay," Nate said.

"And if it starts to be too much, call me and I'll come get her. I won't hold it against you," then she added, "Probably."

"Okay," he repeated. He hung up. Sara tossed the phone onto the couch and exhaled heavily.

"Ave doesn't feel good?" Leonard asked.

"No, of course not," she said sardonically, "because why would anything in my life be easy."

Leonard didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry," Sara said, her voice softer as she uncrossed her legs and curled up against his side.

"You keep telling me that and I'm not really sure why," he replied, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Because everything was hard for so long and we kept almost dying and then after the Markov device things were actually normal for a while, and then hurricane-Nate showed up and now everything's crazy and you're all caught up in it when you shouldn't have to be." Sara stopped to take a breath, "You should want…better, or…easier."

"I want you," he replied, "and anyway, I gave up on normal after the particle accelerator exploded and the Flash showed up. Besides, I…doubt…this Nate thing will last."

"What do you mean?" Sara asked, propping herself up on her elbow to better meet his eyes.

Leonard hesitated, searching for the right words.

"My dad would always come home from prison wanting to be a better man, and he tried. For the first few weeks, he was a good dad and a good husband, but he never could make it last. A job would go badly or my mother wouldn't have dinner on the table at the right time or I got on his bad side, and he would lose it. My father was a man who couldn't do a job if it wasn't easy," he paused, "He didn't know how to keep trying."

"You think Nate's gonna be the same way?" Sara asked.

"Well, considering he didn't try to stay with you when you told him you were pregnant, he's not off to a great start," he replied, "He hasn't had any…challenges…with her yet. We'll have to see how he does when they do happen."

"That's why I didn't want Ave to know he's her dad," Sara said, "I wanted to give him the time to back out if he wanted to, so she wouldn't be disappointed and he wouldn't be known to her as 'the dad who left and didn't come back' for the rest of his life. I know he thinks I was doing it to spite him, but I really wasn't. I don't hold anything against him anymore."

Leonard raised his eyebrows.

"Not _that_ much," she corrected.

He let out a sigh.

"I just don't want to see her disappointed by her dad's inability to do his job, because I know what that's like," he said.

"Well she'll always have you," she said, nudging his side. He said nothing, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw a hint of a smile on his lips, "I'm serious. She loves you so much that it's actually kind of crazy. I can tell she _hates_ calling Nate her dad because the bond the two of you have is like nothing else. She doesn't feel it with him like she does with you. No matter what he does, and no matter how long he stays, you're her dad, not him."

* * *

The next morning, Sara met Nate in the lobby of the hotel to pick Avery up.

She was only waiting a minute or two before they arrived. Nate was holding Avery's hand in one of his own and her backpack in the other.

Avery didn't look to be in great shape, although that made sense considering she clearly had come down with something. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were drooping. The usual bounce in her step was noticeably lackluster.

Nate looked downright exhausted.

"How'd it go?" she asked as Avery let go of Nate's hand and ran into her arms.

"Uh, it was good," Nate nodded, handing Sara the purple backpack.

"Good," Sara nodded, "Hey, sorry she wasn't feeling good."

"No, don't worry about it," he shook his head, "It happens."

"Well, I know we have to head back to Central, but we can schedule another visit. We could do the same overnight thing if you wanted, or she could even stay longer if you were up for it."

"Yeah totally," Nate nodded, "but my work schedule is so crazy right now. Why don't I check when I'm free and I'll let you know what works?"

"Sure," she replied. Nate nodded.

"Uh, so have a safe trip home," he said.

"Thanks."

"Bye Avery."

"Bye," Avery replied, pulling away from her mother to wave at him.

Nate turned and walked towards the tall glass doors and then he was gone.

Sara started towards the elevators with Avery in tow.

"I'm sorry you don't feel good," she said, "Did you have fun with your dad anyway?"

"Uh-huh."

"What'd you do?"

"We made pizza outta bagels and then we watched _Tangled_."

"That's fun, you love _Tangled_ ," Sara replied, "Do you want to press the button?"

"Yeah!"

Sara pointed to the button with an up arrow and watched Avery enthusiastically jab at it. A moment later, the metal doors parted and they stepped inside the elevator.

"What else did you do with him?" Sara asked.

"Can I do this button too?"

"Seven," she replied, "What else did you do with your dad?"

"We played go-fish. He won a lot."

"Oh, well that's okay. You can't win every game. Is that all you did?"

Avery shrugged before lapsing into a coughing fit.

"Where's Daddy?" she finally got out.

"We're almost there," she said as the elevator doors parted. She led Avery down the carpeted hallway to their hotel room, letting them inside.

Leonard was sitting on one of the beds, legs crossed at the ankles, reading a book. He looked up when they walked in.

"Hey," he said, closing the book and setting it on the quilt beside him, "How'd it go?"

Avery tiredly crossed the room and climbed into the bed beside him.

"I don't feel good, Daddy," she said, curling against his side.

Leonard pulled Avery closer to him, running his knuckles up and down her arm.

"That's not fun" he said. Avery shook her head, nuzzling her cheek against his shoulder. He looked up and met Sara's eyes, "So how'd it go?"

She shrugged, "Avery says she had fun, didn't you, Ave?"

Leonard felt Avery nod, her messy curls brushing against the base of his neck.

"I wanna go home," she said.

"I know," Sara said, "We will. Soon. We just need to say bye to Ollie and Auntie Lissy before they go on their honeymoon."

Avery didn't answer.

Leonard held the back of his hand against her forehead.

"She has a fever," he told Sara.

"Ave, did your dad give you any medicine this morning?"

"No," she replied. Sara let out frustrated sigh.

"I'm gonna run out and get her some Tylenol," she said, grabbing her phone and wallet, "I'll be right back."

As Sara left the hotel room, Leonard lifted Avery onto his chest, an arm across her back bracing her from slipping off of him.

She curled up against him, her cheek against his chest.

"Can you read to me, Daddy?"

"Did Nate read you the books you packed?" he asked as he reached for _The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe_.

"One of 'em," she replied, her arms locking around his neck.

"Where'd we leave off," he asked.

"They're in the Beavers' house and Edmund left to find the snow lady," Avery answered.

"Right," he nodded, holding the book above Avery and opening it to the dog-eared page from a couple days ago.

They read two chapters before Sara returned and gave Avery her medicine.

"Felicity and Oliver are gonna meet us downstairs in twenty," she told Leonard, tossing a pile of clothes into her suitcase.

He nodded, standing to help her pack.

After a few minutes, Sara noticed that Avery's eyes had dropped closed, her fist loosening its hold on her bunny blanket.

"No, you can't go to sleep, Ave," Sara said. Avery whined as Sara lifted her up, sitting her on the end of the bed so her legs dangled towards the floor, "I know you don't feel good and you can sleep in the car, but you've gotta stay awake to say bye to Auntie Lis, okay?"

Avery slumped somewhat pathetically over to one side.

"Here," Sara said, holding out Avery's backpack, "Take this and just wait a couple minutes and then we'll go."

Avery pulled the backpack onto her shoulders and stood by the foot of the bed until Sara said it was time to go.

"Ready?" she asked, taking her daughter's hand. Avery nodded and followed Sara and Leonard out of the hotel room.

"Do you wanna push the button?" Sara asked her when they reached the elevator.

Avery shook her head, reaching towards Leonard. He lifted her into his arms as the elevator door opened.

Felicity was waiting for them when they arrived in the lobby of the hotel.

"Hey guys!" she exclaimed, smiling brightly.

"Hey Lis," Sara said, hugging her friend, "Where's Ollie?"

"I guess there's an issue with our plane tickets?" she shrugged, "He's off taking care of it."

"Are you excited for Italy?"

"Hell yeah," she replied, "It's gonna be great. You guys are heading back to Central?"

"Yeah," Sara nodded, "Ave's not feeling great so we're gonna get her back home."

"Oh no," she said, taking Avery from Leonard to give her a hug, "That's not fun, Avie."

Avery shook her head in agreement.

"I'm gonna miss you guys," Felicity said, handing Avery back to Leonard.

"Me too," Sara said, pulling Felicity into another hug, "I'm so happy for you."

"Thank you," she said, hugging her back.

"Have fun in Italy," Sara said, "Eat some gelato for me."

"I will," she nodded, "and when I get back it's all about you."

"Why me?"

"When I get back it'll be only a month until your wedding."

"Oh yeah. I guess you're right."

They heard the sound of vibrating. Felicity glanced down at her phone.

"It's Ollie," she said, "I should go."

She gave Sara one last hug, waved to Leonard and Avery, and then was on her way.

* * *

During the following weeks, Nate took Avery overnight two more times. Sara had to admit she was starting to get tired of driving to Star City, but she knew it was the right thing to do, and besides, Avery seemed to be having fun with him.

Finally, the weekend before Avery started school again, Nate agreed to be the one to make the trip between their cities. He wasn't taking her overnight this time, but, at Sara's suggestion, was bringing her to a children's amusement park a little outside Central City.

"Are you excited, Avie?" Sara asked that morning, pulling a patterned t-shirt and denim shorts out of Avery's dresser.

"Yeah," Avery replied from where she was sitting on her bed, "Wait it's the one that we went to at my summer camp right?"

"Uh-huh," Sara answered.

"Yeah!" she exclaimed, bouncing up and down on her knees, "It's so much fun 'cos there's so many rides, remember?"

"I wasn't there, but I'll take your word for it."

"Are you comin' with us?" she asked, her voice muffled as she pulled her shirt over her head.

"Nope. Daddy and I have to go work on the wedding with Lisa and Iris and everybody."

"Can I come?"

"You're going to the amusement park with your dad, Ave."

"Oh yeah."

Sara watched as Avery pulled on her shorts.

"You ready?" she asked, "He's gonna be here soon."

"Uh-huh," she nodded, jumping off her bed and into the hallway, "Wait, can we do daily bubble?"

"Do you want to wait and do it with your dad?" Sara asked her.

Avery paused, thinking.

"No," she decided, "I wanna do it now."

"Okay," Sara shrugged, following Avery out onto the balcony

"Daddy!" Avery called over her shoulder, "Come do the daily bubble!"

"He's at the grocery store, babe," she told her.

"Is he gonna be back before I go?" Avery asked as she pulled the plastic top off the tupperware container holding the bubble soap.

"Maybe," Sara replied, picking up the bubble wand, "He told me to tell you to have fun for him in case he isn't, though. Ready?"

Avery nodded. Sara slowly dragged the pink plastic wand through the air until the bubble formed, bouncing through the air, wobbling as the wind pushed it in different directions.

"One," Avery was counting, "Two…three…four…five."

Sara joined for, "Six…seven…eight."

And then it popped when a particularly strong gust of wind blew it into a nearby telephone pole.

"Aw," Avery pouted.

"Hey, that one wasn't that bad," Sara told her, putting the lid back on the tupperware container, "C'mon, come put your shoes on and wait for your dad."

* * *

A half hour later, she was still waiting for Nate.

Leonard had returned to the apartment about ten minutes earlier.

"Sorry, traffic — hey, why's Avery still here."

After another thirty minutes, Sara tried calling him, but he didn't pick up.

"Mommy, where is he," Avery asked, hanging off the back of the couch.

"I dunno, honey, he's probably just running late."

A full two hours after Nate was supposed to show up, the phone finally rang. Leonard picked it up.

"Hello?" he said, although he suspected he already knew who was on the other end.

"Hey, it's Nate."

"Avery's here waiting for you," Leonard told him, not bothering with small-talk.

"Yeah, so there's a problem," Nate said, "I'm not gonna make it."

"What?" he asked, anger creeping into his voice before he could stop it.

"I got put on the schedule at work by accident and we've been super busy lately so I didn't think I should just cancel. Sorry this is last minute."

"You were supposed to pick her up at seven-thirty, and now it's almost ten," Leonard said, "That's not last minute, that's late."

"I know," he said apologetically, "Look, I have to go. Tell Sara I'm sorry."

Before he could say anything, Nate hung up. Leonard closed his eyes, letting out a deep exhale.

A moment later, the apartment door opened and Sara and Avery walked in, the latter pushing her bike by the handlebars. Sara stopped when she saw the phone in Leonard's hand.

"Ave," she said, "go put your bike in your room and play for a little bit, okay?"

When Avery was in her room, Sara said, "He's not coming."

Leonard shook his head.

"He said something came up," he told her, "He told me to tell you he's sorry."

"I'm sure he is," Sara shook her head. There was a sadness in her eyes as she walked closer to him. She sighed, "It can't just be easy."

He pulled her into a hug.

"It can't just be easy," he repeated.

* * *

 **So the next chapter is Len and Sara's wedding! (maybe. I might decide the transition isn't right and split it into two). Sorry again for the extended wait. I'm gonna try to get back to my weekly update routine for these last few chapters. Fingers crossed!**


	21. Chapter 21

**Ahh this is the quickest update I've had in so long. I haven't slept in thirty six hours but that's okay! Hope you enjoy this!**

* * *

The day Nate bailed on bringing Avery to the amusement park, Sara thought she'd be furious at him forever, but time passed. Life moved forwards. Avery started preschool again, Leonard began to work full-time at Central City Picture News — the same place Iris worked — and things got busy again at the precinct for Sara. None of them had the time or energy to waste on being mad at Nate. The situation eventually moved to the back-burner, but it wasn't gone entirely.

Nate had called Sara the night he was supposed to take Avery for the day. He apologized for flaking and offered to take her later that week.

"I forgot to call out of work," was the excuse he gave Sara the morning of the second attempt, "My boss says they really need me in today."

That time, Sara made Nate tell Avery himself that he couldn't make it, and it marked the last time Sara told her when her father arranged to visit with her. She wanted to spare her the disappointment.

It paid off because Sara tried three more times to organize plans with Nate, even offering to drive Avery to Star City rather than having him make the trip to Central, but it always fell through.

This day, the day before Sara and Leonard's wedding, marked exactly three weeks since they had last heard from him.

"Mama," Avery said, climbing up onto their bed early that morning, "I'm hungry."

"You're hungry?" Sara asked quietly, pulling Avery into her arms, "What d'you want to eat?"

"Daddy's waffles," she whispered, a cheeky smile on her face.

Sara leaned forward, her forehead touching Avery's.

"You want Daddy to get up and make us waffles?" she whispered back. Avery nodded. They both looked over to Leonard.

"I'm still sleeping," he grumbled. Avery giggled.

"Y'know Ave," Sara said, pointedly raising her voice to a normal level, "This is the last morning with Daddy before the wedding, because the bride and groom aren't supposed to see each other. So tonight Daddy's leaving and spending the night somewhere else, so it'll just be you and me for breakfast tomorrow…by ourselves."

"Alright, alright," Leonard muttered, feigning annoyance as he swung his legs out of bed and headed for the kitchen.

"Avery?" Sara asked a minute later, "Do you miss your dad?"

"Why?" Avery asked, looking up at her.

"What do you mean, _why_?"

"He's in there," Avery pointed in the direction of the kitchen where they could faintly hear Leonard starting breakfast. Sara couldn't keep a smile from etching its way across her face.

"What about…Nate?" she tried again, "Do you miss him?"

"No," Avery replied, shaking her head.

Sara and Avery stayed in bed for a few more minutes. Avery had started her second year of preschool a little over a month ago, and although it was a relief to have her back in school for most of the day, her absence was giving Sara a bit of separation anxiety, although she wasn't sure if that was the best word for it. Whatever it was, Sara wanted to snuggle with her daughter while Avery would still let her.

"Hey," Sara said, "Let's go help Dad with breakfast."

Avery nodded.

"Nice of you to join me," Leonard said as they entered the kitchen.

"We wanna help," Avery chirped, pulling herself up onto a stool at the kitchen island, "Can I stir?"

Leonard nodded, handing her the metal spatula.

"So when do you think we should leave?" Sara asked him, referring to the forty five minute drive to where their wedding would be taking place.

"Technically we don't have to be there until tonight, but I think Iris and Cisco would appreciate us getting there a little bit earlier than last minute," he replied.

"Well, if anyone, it would be me," Sara joked as she pulled three ceramic plates out of the cupboard.

"Done," Avery said, pushing the bowl of now mixed waffle batter towards Leonard.

"Come help me set the table, Ave," Sara said, opening the silverware drawer.

Not too long later, the table was set and Leonard was lifting the last steaming waffle off of the iron.

Just as Avery was climbing into her chair at the dining table, the front door opened and Cisco and Lisa entered the apartment.

"We smelled breakfast," Lisa smirked.

"Chef's out," Leonard said immediately, walking out of the kitchen.

"Oh c'mon," Sara rolled her eyes in exasperation as she began to spoon more batter onto the waffle iron.

"Mommy, I'm hungry," Avery whined.

"Just a few more minutes," Sara told her.

A few minutes later, as promised, all five of them were sitting around the dining table eating breakfast.

"So you guys're getting married in twenty four hours," Cisco said through a mouthful of waffles, "That must be freaky to think about."

"Freaky isn't exactly the word I would use," Lisa said, giving her boyfriend a pointed look, "but it must be exciting thinking about how close it is."

"Mommy," Avery said before either Sara or Leonard could answer, "When you and Daddy get married, does that mean Lisa's my aunt because she's Daddy's sister? 'Cos Auntie Laurel is your sister."

They were all silent for a moment.

"That..somehow never crossed my mind," Sara admitted, "Yeah, Lisa's gonna be your aunt when we get married. Good catch, Ave."

"Aww, I'm gonna get a niece without having to change any diapers," Lisa said, "Nice going, Len."

"You're welcome," he replied.

There were a few minutes of quiet while they all ate breakfast, occasionally interrupted by Avery's ramblings about school and princesses and ballet.

"So when are you guys planning on heading up?" Lisa asked a few minutes later.

"Whenever," Sara shrugged nonchalantly, mostly to get a rise out of Cisco. She glanced up from her plate to see if it had worked.

It did.

"What do you mean ' _whenever_ '?" he asked, his expression as close to a glare as Cisco could ever get, "You do realize this is your _wedding_ we're talking about, right?"

"Chill, Ramon —" Leonard said.

"Was that a cold pun?" he asked.

"—she's kidding."

"We're heading out in a few hours," Sara finished, a smirk on her lips.

"I still don't get how you guys are able to be so relaxed about this," Cisco replied, shaking his head, "It's not even my wedding and I'm way more stressed out about it than either of you. Like, don't you realize how many things could go wrong?"

"First of all," Leonard said, setting his fork down on his plate, "You're more stressed about it because you're the one who planned the whole thing. Second, the only thing I care about is being married to Sara. Once that happens, the cake could explode or the dance floor could catch on fire and I wouldn't care."

" _I_ would care!" Cisco exclaimed.

"Like I said," Leonard replied, his eyebrows raised.

"Whatever, man," he said, raising his hands in surrender, "Just don't let Iris or Felicity hear what you guys are saying."

"We wouldn't dare," Sara smirked.

* * *

A few hours later, Leonard, Sara, and Avery were on their way up to the Central City mountains.

Although Cisco and Iris had planned the majority of the wedding festivities, they had given Leonard and Sara the final call on a few of the details, one of the more important being the venue.

Both Leonard and Sara knew that a church ceremony wasn't the way they wanted to go, and not too much later, they decided they wanted an outdoor wedding.

"It'll be October so nobody will be sweltering in the heat," Sara had said when she discussed it with Leonard, Iris, and Cisco, " and we won't have to worry about Ave and her friends breaking something in a fancy reception place."

After that decision had been made, they still had to choose a venue. It was hard to find somewhere they could all deem acceptable in the middle of a city, but then Leonard had an idea.

"Hey, what if we used the cabin up in the mountains," he had suggested.

"Really?" Sara asked. She'd be lying if she said the thought had never crossed her mind, but she'd just figured Leonard wouldn't want that many people knowing about the cabin.

"Yeah," he had nodded, "We can use the house to get ready, and there's that field that we can use for the ceremony and the reception."

"The mountains'll look gorgeous in the fall," Sara nodded in agreement.

After that, they ran it by Iris and Cisco, who were, by this point, actually their wedding planners (Sara still couldn't believe it) and then it was official.

Now, less than twenty four hours until their wedding, they were making the drive up to the cabin up in the Central City mountains, the cabin where their relationship first began.

"It looks exactly the same!" Sara exclaimed when they arrived, "Well, except for all that."

She gestured out into the field where everything for the wedding ceremony and reception was almost completely set up.

"Woah!" Avery said, leaning forward against the straps on her carseat.

"And look, Avie," Sara said, pointing towards where the reception would be held, "There's gonna be fairy lights everywhere, just like the ones on your bed, and cool lanterns and stuff, and they're gonna look like stars when it starts to get dark."

"Cool!"

"Dare I say you're actually getting excited about this?" Leonard asked, leaning against the passenger side door as Sara unbuckled Avery and lifted her out of the car.

"You say that like you aren't," she smirked back.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he replied.

"Two weeks ago you wanted to know what color my bridesmaids' dresses are so the groomsmen's ties could match," she reminded him.

"I was asking for Cisco," Leonard argued as they walked up the wooden stars onto the front porch.

"Yeah," Sara said, her hand on the doorknob, "Sure."

She pulled the front door open and they were instantly met with a chorus of greetings, applause, and a wolf-whistle that sounded suspiciously like Lisa.

They looked over the balcony to see all of their friends gathered in the living room. Iris, Barry, Cisco, and Caitlin were all sitting on the leather couch. Lisa sat cross-legged on the rug, her back against Cisco's legs. Felicity, Sara's maid of honor, was sitting in an upholstered armchair. Food, drinks, and a stack of board games and movies were scattered around the coffee table.

"You made it!" Felicity exclaimed as Sara, Leonard, and Avery walked down the stairs into the open living area.

"We did," Sara replied, "What's going on?"

"Well, we figured a fancy rehearsal dinner wasn't really your style," Cisco explained, "But we didn't want to do nothing, so we have games and movies and cards —"

"And there's pizza on the way," Iris cut in, "and we have snacks and booze — we're gonna break out the _really_ good stuff after Avery goes to bed. We just thought we could all, you know, hang out and just have a nice time together the night before your wedding."

"Aww, guys, you didn't have to do this," Sara said, smiling fondly at everyone.

"Yeah, you really didn't have to," Leonard said as stoically as he could muster.

"Cut it out, Len," she said, jokingly hitting his arm, "No one's buying it anymore."

"Yeah, Snart, we know you love us," Caitlin added teasingly.

"We're gonna play games?" Avery asked excitedly.

"Yup," Felicity said, "Do you wanna pick the first one?"

"Yeah!"

She ended up picking The Game of Life, which is exactly what Sara thought would happen.

"That's her favorite," she said when Avery pointed to the colorful cardboard box.

They ended up playing in teams of one and two, " 'cos there's only six cars," Avery explained. They took a break in the middle for pizza before returning to the game (Sara and Leonard won by a landslide, mostly because they were having Avery steal money for them).

"Can we play another game?" Avery asked.

"It's almost your bedtime," Sara replied, "but if you go brush your teeth and get your PJ's on super fast, we can."

Avery looked over the pile of games, her eyes landing on the deck of cards.

"Can we play go-fish?" she asked.

"Ooh, yeah, I love go-fish," Iris said.

"Sounds good. Go get ready for bed, Avie, so we can play," Sara said.

Avery ended up completely demolishing everybody in both rounds of go-fish they played.

"You let her win," Cisco grumbled at Leonard when Sara left to put Avery to bed, "You never let any of us win when we used to all play hearts at the lab."

"Well, you aren't four years old and just learning how to play."

"Still."

Sara returned a few minutes later.

"Len, she wants you to say goodnight to her," she said.

He nodded, getting to his feet.

As he started towards the hallway of bedrooms, he heard Felicity say, "That's so cute, I think I'm gonna cry."

Avery was in the same bedroom she had slept in when they were here several months ago. She was tucked underneath the quilt with her bunny blanket next to her.

"You wanted me to come say goodnight, Avery?" he asked.

"Uh-huh," she replied. Leonard sat on the edge of the bed.

"You know I'm not gonna be here when you wake up tomorrow, right?" he told her. She nodded solemnly, "So have fun helping your mom get ready tomorrow."

"Okay."

"Goodnight, Ave," he said, leaning over to kiss the top of her head.

"Night-night."

Leonard stood and headed for the door.

"Bye, Daddy," she said, her voice quiet. Leonard smiled.

"Sleep good, Avery."

* * *

When Leonard returned, they all continued drinking and playing board games.

After a game of Clue where Leonard sacrificed a win to accuse Barry of being the killer, Caitlin suggested a round of Trivial Pursuit. Iris and Sara backed out for the reason of it being, as Sara said, the most boring game ever invented.

"There's stuff to make margaritas in the kitchen," Lisa told them as Cisco started to set up the game.

"Hell yeah," Sara said, getting up from her spot on the couch next to Leonard to follow Iris.

When they were in the kitchen, they pulled together everything they'd need for margaritas.

"Shit, this is nice tequila," Iris said, turning a glass bottle over to look at the label.

"I'm pretty sure Felicity stole that from Oliver's collection."

"Oliver drinks tequila?"

"He probably won't notice it's gone."

Iris started to pour the ingredients into a steel cocktail shaker.

"Hard to believe your wedding is tomorrow," Iris said, "You nervous?"

"Not really," Sara shrugged, "I'm just ready to be married to him."

Iris smiled.

"You guys are sweet," she said.

"Just start pouring,"she smirked, "Len wants to play poker after this, and just to warn you, he cheats, a _lot_."

"Yeah, I kind of figured."

* * *

They all finally wrapped up the party just before one in the morning.

"So this is the longest we'll go without seeing each other basically since we met," Sara told Leonard, aware she was only exaggerating slightly.

Leonard, Cisco, and Barry were about to leave for another cabin (this one not owned by Leonard) a few minutes up the road, where they would be staying for the night and getting ready for the wedding the next morning.

"Think you'll survive?" Leonard asked her, smirking.

"I think I'll be okay," she replied, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Sara stood on her toes to kiss him, her arms twining around his neck. His hand traveled down her spine, resting on the small of her back.

"Hey, break it up guys," Cisco said, "It's past midnight, which is already breaking the wedding rules. What you're doing right now is basically illegal."

Sara pulled away from Leonard.

"Alright, Cisco, we get it," she said. She met Leonard's eyes, "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow."

* * *

Sara got to sleep in the morning of her wedding day. She woke up briefly around six when her door opened and she heard the sound of little feet pitter-pattering against wood floor, but then either Felicity or Iris (she couldn't tell who by their hushed whisper) ushered Avery out. She ended up finally getting out of bed at a little past ten.

"Here comes the bride!" Felicity said in a sing-song voice when Sara walked into the kitchen, "Look, Avery and I made omelets."

" _Avery_ made omelets?" Sara asked skeptically as she sat down at the island.

"Well, I made omelets," she corrected, "But Avery poured everyone orange juice and she didn't spill any, right Avery?"

"Uh-huh!" Avery said proudly.

"Where is everyone?" Sara asked as she started to eat.

"Lisa is helping Cisco put the finishing touches on everything outside," Felicity replied, "Like, the flowers and all the other stuff that couldn't be outside all night. Then she's dropping off the guys' boutonnières and bringing all the other flowers, like for our hair and your bouquet and Ave's basket, over. Iris is showing the band and food people where to set up."

"They're here already?"

"Yep. You slept a lot later than we thought you would."

"Yeah, thanks for that," Sara said gratefully, "Was it you or Iris who got Ave out?"

"That was me," Felicity said, "As your maid of honor it's my job to make sure you're well rested for your wedding day."

"I appreciate it, Lis," Sara said, "But aren't you technically a _matron_ of honor, because you're married?"

"Yeah, but matron makes me sound, like, fifty-two years old."

"That's oddly specific."

Lisa and Iris returned to the cabin not too long later, and Sara's mother, Dinah, followed shortly after them. She had brought an old photo album with her, and they all sat on the leather couch and flipped through the pages.

"I've always thought you look just like Avery in this picture," Dinah said, pointing to a old photograph of Sara when she was four. It was taken on Halloween, and Sara was dressed as cat, in a black shirt and tutu, whiskers drawn on her cheeks with black face paint, and a headband with fuzzy cat ears in her messy blonde hair.

"I forgot my hair was that curly!" Sara exclaimed.

"Yes, well, Avery gets that from you," Dinah said.

Avery had been rather subdued all morning. Sara figured it was just from all the excitement of the wedding, a lot of which she couldn't really understand yet, but she found out the true reason not too long after she put her down for a nap.

Sara stopped in front of Avery's door when she heard a sniffling noise from inside. She pushed it open to see Avery curled up underneath the quilt, tears running down her cheeks.

"What's wrong Avie," Sara said calmly as she crossed the room and scooped her into her arms, sitting on the bed with Avery in her lap.

"I miss Daddy," she choked out through her tears, "I wan' him to come back."

Sara furrowed her eyebrows.

"What do you mean, 'come back'?" she asked.

" 'Cos he left."

"He _left_?"

"Yesterday you said that was the last breakfast with Daddy because you can't see each other and then yesterday he said bye before I went to bed and today he's not here anymore."

" _Oh_ ," Sara said, suddenly realizing why Avery was so upset, "Avie, Daddy's not gone _forever_. There's just a tradition that when two people get married, they don't see each other until the ceremony. That way it's more special."

"Really?" Avery asked, wiping away the tears on her cheeks with the back of her hand.

"Aww, honey did you really think he wasn't coming back?" Sara asked. She felt a nod as she held Avery closer, "No, honey, he's not gone. He's at another house like this one just a few minutes away with Barry and Cisco."

"He is?"

"Yes, he is," Sara nodded, "Trust me, he can't get away from us that easy."

After a moment, Avery looked up at her.

"You promise he's coming back?" she asked.

"Yes, I promise," Sara replied. She thought for a second, "Hey, do you want to go see him?" Avery nodded. "And do you promise you'll take a nap after?" She nodded again, "Okay. Let's go."

She set Avery down and waited for her as she slid on her sandals before heading out of the room and towards the stairs.

Halfway up, they were stopped by Iris and Felicity.

"Where do you think you're going?" Felicity asked.

"Ave really needs to see Len right now, right Ave?" She looked down at Avery who was swiping at her still puffy eyes.

"Aww, what happened?" Iris asked, sympathy on both her and Felicity's faces.

"She got a little confused about Len spending the night away," Sara explained, "She thought he was leaving forever, and I think she needs to make sure he's really still here. I'm just gonna bring her over there for a few minutes."

"Uh, you're not supposed to see each other, remember?" Felicity asked somewhat accusingly.

"Well I wasn't planning on it, but she can't exactly walk over there herself," Sara shrugged.

"Why don't I bring her," Iris suggested, "I have to ask Barry about something anyway."

"Perfect," Felicity said before Sara could respond, "And while that's happening, Sara, you need to start getting ready.

"The ceremony doesn't start for another three hours."

"Exactly," Felicity replied, grabbing her arm and pulling her back down the stairs, "Let's go."

* * *

As Iris and Avery were making their way over to the other cabin, Barry was pushing open the door to Leonard's room.

"Hey," he said. Leonard looked up from his book, "I just wanted to see how you're doing. Make sure you didn't try to leave or anything."

"Do you really think—"

"That was mostly a joke."

"Right," Leonard said. After a moment, he asked, "How's the game."

There was a football game playing on the TV in the living room, but given that Leonard had zero interest in sports, he'd opted to sit and read — something he hadn't gotten to do much of recently, as Avery had taken to asking if he could read his book out loud to her, no matter what it was, which then led to reading at least one chapter of Narnia (they were nearing the end now, which meant they could watch the movie soon, something Avery had been long awaiting).

"Not bad," Barry replied. He took a deep breath, looking nervously around the room.

"If you want to say something, say it," Leonard said, closing his book and putting it on a side table before getting to his feet.

"I just," he hesitated, "I just wanted to say that I'm proud of you — don't roll your eyes, I mean it! When I first met you —"

"When you first met me, I was hurting and killing and stealing from people and then I met Sara and she made me a better person and I don't do any of those things anymore," Leonard interrupted, "Spare me."

"No, what I mean is —"

He was cut off again by a light knock on the wooden doorframe. They both looked over to see Iris standing in the doorway with Avery.

"I hope we're not interrupting anything," Iris said, "Miss Avery wanted to come say hi to you, Snart."

She gave Avery a little nudge forwards.

"Barry, why don't we wait in the other room," Iris suggested. He nodded and followed her into the hallway.

"Your mom told me you're upset about something," Leonard said.

Sara had texted him five minutes ago: _Ave thought ur leaving forever. She's pretty upset. Iris bringing her over btw._

Avery nodded. There was a hint of nervousness in her eyes that Leonard hadn't seen in a long time, not since when she hid behind Sara's legs in the doorway of her then-new apartment the day Leonard met them for the first time.

"Mommy said yesterday you were gonna not see us," Avery said.

"And you thought that meant forever?" he asked, crouching down to her height.

She nodded. Before he could say anything else, her eyes had filled with tears, her chin trembling.

As Avery started to cry, Leonard pulled her into a hug, his arms around her shoulders, one hand on the back of her head.

"Ave, don't cry," he said, aware at that point it would be like telling a fire, "don't burn".

Sara had told him how Avery didn't seem to remember much of who Nate Heywood was and what he did, but Leonard was beginning to think her recollection was better than she was letting on.

"I'm never gonna leave you," he murmured into her hair, "or your mom. You know that, right?"

She nodded.

He waited another few moments as her tears began to peter out.

"You ready to go back?" he asked.

Avery didn't respond, her grip tightening on his shoulders.

"C'mon Ave, your mom needs you to take a nap so you can have fun later, okay?"

"Okay," she whispered, her voice muffled.

"I love you, Avie."

"I love you too, Daddy," she said, finally pulling away.

They both looked to the door at the sound of a throat being cleared. They saw Barry leaning against the doorframe, a smile on his face.

"Avery, Iris is waiting for you in the living room," he said.

She nodded and left the room.

"This is what I'm talking about, man," Barry said, "That little girl loves you so much that she needed to come over here to make sure you hadn't left. The Leonard Snart I met three years ago wouldn't have done that. Do you remember when Felicity Smoak tricked you into backing down with a vacuum she pretended was an advanced cold gun?"

"For the record, I knew that was fake," Leonard said over him.

"Felicity Smoak is the maid of honor at your wedding now. Is that not unbelievable to you?" Barry's expression changed from inspired optimism to vague disbelief, "Wait, isn't it weird that you met her so long ago and she was your future wife's best friend the whole time? Isn't that crazy? I didn't even think about tha—"

"Barry," Leonard interrupted, "You were saying?"

"Right, right. Think about Cisco. Almost three years ago, you kidnapped him and his brother, and now he's dating your sister and he planned your whole freaking wedding! He's one of your groomsmen!"

"What's your point to all of this?" he asked, "Unless it's to drag up all the shitty things I did three years ago."

"My point," Barry continued, "Is that all of those changes didn't just happen randomly, and not just because of Sara and Avery, because it's been longer than that. It's because of you. You're a better person than you were when we first met, and I'm proud of you, and I'm really grateful you let me be your best man."

He had a point. Leonard didn't particularly enjoy looking at the person he was several years ago. The fact that he worked with the Legion of Doom, something he couldn't even believe now, was bad enough, but what was worse was thinking back to the things he'd done to the Flash and his team. It was difficult to imagine how they had become people he worked with and later befriended; they may be a forgiving group, but not _that_ forgiving. It was truly a testament to the person he became — a better person, like Barry said.

It seemed fitting that Barry was his best man. He had seen Leonard become a person capable of being loved by Sara Lance, because it went unspoken, but understood by both of them, that Sara would not have even given the time of day to the man Leonard was not more than two years ago. His groomsmen were part of that journey as well: Joe West, the cop who had given him far too many chances than he deserved and the first father Leonard saw who actually gave a damn about his kids, even the ones that weren't his own, and Cisco, who Leonard was starting to (begrudgingly) accept would probably be part of his family soon — not that he'd ever tell him that.

Unlikely as it was, these people trusted him to become a better version of himself, and the fact that they were here, on his wedding day, showed him that he had done that.

* * *

Over in the other cabin, Sara was beginning to wish she hadn't complained about starting to get ready so soon, because two and a half hours later, she wasn't complaining anymore. It looked like it was actually going to take the full three hours to get everyone ready.

Her hair had taken the longest. She had opted to leave it down, rather than pin it up like Felicity had for her wedding. It was loosely curled, and half was pulled up into a twisted braid. Laced into the braid were small peach roses and stems of burgundy heather.

As much as Sara had complained about having a wedding — at first almost serious, and then mostly just to annoy Cisco — she was enjoying herself. So much of her time with Leonard, what with Malcolm Merlyn, her crazy family, and then Nate, had been _difficult_ , to say the least. It was nice to know they had a day that was free of drama, conflict, or potential death, a day that could be perfect.

"Hey," Felicity said, her voice uncharacteristically calm, "You ready to put on your dress?"

Sara nodded. She followed Felicity into the first bedroom, where a tall mirror and a bust holding her wedding dress was set up.

A few minutes later, Felicity was fastening the last button in the lace fabric.

"You're all set," she said. Sara turned to face her, "Oh my God, you're the most beautiful person in the world. I'm gonna cry."

"Now you know how I felt at your wedding," Sara replied, feeling her chest tighten and pinpricks in her eyes, the telltale sign that tears, uncharacteristic as they were, were on their way.

"Don't even say that," Felicity said, pulling Sara into a tight hug.

"Please don't start crying, guys," Iris said, "We definitely don't have time to redo your makeup."

"I'm not crying," Felicity said tearily as she pulled away from Sara.

"Hey."

Sara looked towards the new voice and saw her sister standing in the doorway.

"Laurel," she said, "Hi."

"Hey Felicity," Iris said, "Let's go make sure all the flowers are ready. Right now. Please."

"Yeah, yeah, good idea," Felicity nodded quickly. They both left the room, a bit more hurriedly than Sara thought they intended.

"Mom told me where I could find you," Laurel said, "Wow, you look beautiful."

"Thanks," Sara replied.

Laurel stepped further into the room, closer to her sister.

"I wanted to say sorry," she said, "for Nate."

"Didn't you do that at Felicity's wedding?" Sara asked.

"Uh, yeah, but I don't think it was a very good apology."

"Well, I think your exact words were 'I'm sorry I guess' so…" she trailed off.

"Well, I wanted to apologize for real. When Nate called me a few months ago and asked where he could find you, I didn't even think about anything before I told him. I should have asked you first or told you after or _something_ , I dunno," Laurel said, "It was selfish of me to not consider what it would mean for you, and for Len. I just thought it would be nice for Nate to know how amazing his daughter is, and —" she stopped herself, shaking her head, "But it's not about what I thought. It was wrong, and I'm sorry."

Sara gave her a half-smile.

"It's okay. Thank you for apologizing, but it's okay. It's…" she hesitated, "…resolving itself."

"I'm sorry," Laurel repeated.

"It's okay," Sara told her, "and hey, I'm sorry for being bitchier about it than I probably should have been."

"I accidentally tried to shift your entire family dynamic!" Laurel exclaimed, "You're allowed to be bitchy!"

They both laughed.

Sara stepped forwards and hugged her sister. Laurel immediately reciprocated the gesture.

"I'm so happy for you," Laurel said as she pulled away, "but I should probably go now. I don't think there's much time left until the ceremony starts, and you probably need to keep getting ready."

Sara nodded, blinking away the tears in her eyes. She walked with Laurel out of the bedroom and into the living area. Laurel waved at everyone before she walked up the stairs and out the front door.

"That looked like it went well," Felicity commented.

"It did," Sara nodded.

"Well, there's about twenty minutes until we have to go," she said, "You should get Ave ready now."

Sara nodded.

Avery was in another bedroom, lying on her stomach on the woven rug and looking at a picture book. She looked up when Sara walked in.

"Mama, you look like a princess!" she gasped, jumping to her feet.

"Thanks Avie!" she smiled, "You ready to get dressed?"

"Yes!" Avery exclaimed.

Avery had been anxiously waiting to put her flower girl dress on, but out of everyone, she'd had to wait the longest to get ready. Sara knew that most of the things Avery did, she ended up wearing somehow. She wanted to prevent something happening to the dress for as long as possible.

It was a fairly simple dress, a lightweight cotton fabric of a light blue color. The cream colored hem, resting just above her knees in the front, dropped lower in the back not unlike a train, nearly brushing against the floor as she walked.

Placed on top of her hair (falling in neat curls for once, thanks to the genius hairstylist Iris had brought in) was a crown of the same flowers in Sara's bouquet. On her feet were cream sandals with a strap around her ankles.

"You look beautiful, baby," Sara said, hugging her from behind as Avery looked at herself in the tall mirror with a look of wonder on her face, "All you need is your basket."

She took her hand and led her out into the main living area, where Iris, Felicity, and Dinah were waiting for them.

"Where's Lisa?" Sara asked.

"She went over to the boy's cabin to tell them it's time to go," Iris answered, "She'll be back in a few minutes so we can head over."

At that moment, Lisa was opening the door to the other cabin and walking inside.

Everyone was ready. The groomsmen were all in dark grey vests over white dress shirts rolled up to the elbow. They wore burgundy ties, with stems of heather, the same as in Sara's hair, pinned to their vests.

Her brother was dressed like his groomsmen, except he wore a dark grey suit jacket over his vest. His tie was a pale peach color, and the flowers on his boutonnière were the same as in Sara's bouquet and Avery's crown.

"Hey," Lisa said, walking into the living room.

"Woah," Cisco said, "You look amazing."

"Thanks, babe," she smirked, "You clean up nice too." She looked to the rest of the room, "You guys ready to go?"

A chorus of affirmations followed.

"You ready?" Lisa asked her brother, her voice lowered.

"Yes," he said. Lisa smiled, "You do look beautiful."

Sara's bridesmaids were dressed in lace, asymmetrical dresses of a deep burgundy color. Narrow spaghetti straps widened into an open back and deep v-neck. Lisa's long brown hair was curled, a peach colored rose pinned into a braid at the back.

"Thanks," she replied, "Just wait 'til you see your wife."

"She's not my wife yet," he said, although unable to conceal a smile as the word left his lips.

"I'm really happy for you," Lisa said, "You know that, right?"

"Yes," he sighed in exasperation.

"I mean it," she continued, "I know all this — a wedding and a wife and a daughter — is something you didn't really see happening for you, but it is, and you're the happiest I've literally ever seen you. You love those two girls so much."

"I do."

"I love you, Len," she said, hugging him.

"I love you too, Lis," he replied.

She took a step back.

"C'mon, let's go get you married."

* * *

Less than ten minutes later, Sara, Avery, and the rest of the wedding party were gathered behind a gauzy curtain shielding them from the guests. The sky was a bright blue, the air was warm, a cool breeze brushing over them.

"You ready?"

Sara turned to see her father.

"Yeah," she nodded, a smile on her face.

With all the preparations, the visit from her sister, and dealing with Avery, her father was the one person she hadn't gotten the chance to talk to today.

"Hey, look, I know I've said this before, but I'm sorry if I gave you and Leonard a hard time in the beginning," Quentin said, "I was just trying to look out for you, but now I get that I don't need to do that. You are strong and smart and you don't need me to take care of you. I can tell that you love him and you're happy, and I'm sorry I tried to, y'know, get in the way of that."

Sara stepped forward to hug her dad.

"This has just been a whole day of Lance family apologies," Sara said, chuckling.

"You talked to Laurel?"

"I did," she nodded.

"And you guys are gonna be okay?"

"I think we are."

"Good to hear," he said.

"One minute, everyone," Iris said.

"Gimme a second, dad, I wanna talk to Avery before this starts," Sara said as she started to turn away.

"Are you ready, Avie?" Sara asked, crouching down to hug her daughter from behind, her arms wrapping around Avery's middle.

"Uh-huh," she chirped, although Sara caught a hint of nervousness in her voice.

"You remember what we practiced?" she asked, "How to do the petals and not go too fast? And you remember to stand next to Felicity once you get up to the archway?"

Avery nodded.

"You're gonna do great," Sara said, kissing Avery's cheek, "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Mommy," she replied.

From behind the curtain, Sara heard the officiant say, "All rise," and the music start to play.

"You ready to get married?" Felicity asked as Sara straightened.

"Ready."

* * *

"All rise," the officiant said.

Leonard watched from the side as all the wedding guests got to their feet. He could see Caitlin and Harry in the front row. On the other side of the aisle stood Donna Smoak next to the empty chair that would soon belong to Quentin.

He took a moment to look at the ceremony Cisco and Iris had put together. He had been a little nervous about entrusting them with the task of pulling together his and Sara's wedding, but he had to admit, they did a really good job.

They had laid down planks of light wood on the grass to give a stable surface to the dark wooden chairs. A narrow, white carpet ran down the aisle, bordered on either side by a trail of the same peach-colored rose petals that were in Avery's basket. The alter was a step above the rest of the floor, framed by a wooden arch covered in a white, gauzy fabric that fluttered in the autumn breeze.

Leonard's attention was brought back to the ceremony when the music began to play. He felt a pang in his heart at the sound of the first note on the cello being played.

Leonard and Sara had both laughed at Cisco when he had suggested that the traditional wedding march would play during the ceremony. Cisco had quickly admitted it didn't quite suit them, but he had then asked what song they _did_ want, and they had no answer for him. Then, a few weeks later, Avery's ballet school held an evening for parents to sit in on a class and see how their kids were doing. It was then, in one of the final exercises they watched, that they heard Pachelbel's Canon in D major.

He remembered Sara's hand squeezing his.

"Did we just hear our wedding song?" Sara asked him in a low voice when the routine was finished.

"I think we did," he murmured back.

And now here he was, on his wedding day, listening to Pachelbel's Canon in D major as the curtains behind the rows of seats parted.

Dinah Lance started her walk down the aisle, a small, proud smile on her face.

Leonard waited until Dinah was standing in front of her chair before he made his own walk to the alter, passing in front of one section of chairs before coming to a stop beside the officiant. He felt heads turning towards him, but he ignored them. Dinah met his eyes and gave him a small nod.

Iris and Joe then passed through the curtain, walking arm-in-arm. They parted when they reached the step up to the alter. Leonard caught Joe saying to his daughter, "practice, for when I walk you down the aisle at your wedding".

When they had separated, Leonard could see Lisa and Cisco walking down the aisle behind them. Lisa met his eyes, a wide smile on her face. Cisco kissed her cheek before they separated, going to stand next to Joe and Iris.

After them came their best man and maid of honor. Felicity and Barry both wore beaming smiles as they walked towards Leonard.

There was a pause after Barry and Felicity parted at the alter, but moments later, Avery stepped through the curtain.

She looked very small from such a distance, barely taller than the chairs their guests sat in. He watched with a smile on his face as she slowly made her way down the aisle, tossing rose petals onto the carpet around her as she went.

She made it about three-quarters of the way down the aisle before she noticed Leonard. She let the basket fall to the ground as she ran the rest of the distance to him, jumping into his arms.

There was a chorus of "awws" from the guests as he lifted her up, swaying her side to side. He planted a kiss on her cheek before gently setting her on the ground. She moved to stand just in front of Felicity.

The burgundy curtain behind the rows of seats parted for a final time, and Leonard was met with the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen.

* * *

 **Yeah, so that was the mushiest chapter I've written, I think, but that's okay. Only one chapter left, and then the promised alternate ending.**


	22. Chapter 22

**I am not ready for this story to be over.** **I also made an aesthetic board for the wedding bc I got emotional, and you can find it on my tumblr _captaincanarygotmelike_ , which you also should follow ;)**

* * *

"Daddy was gonna cry when he saw you, Mommy," Avery gleefully announced.

"He was?" Sara asked, looking above her daughter's head to smirk at Leonard.

The ceremony had gone by in what felt like seconds, and before either of them knew it, they were at their reception, sitting at a large wooden table watching Laurel try to coerce her dad onto the dance floor.

"Uh-huh, 'cos you looked so beautiful in your dress," Avery nodded.

"Are you selling me out?" Leonard asked her.

"Yeah," she giggled.

The reception Iris and Cisco put together was beyond anything either Leonard or Sara could have imagined. They had built (or they had hired someone to build, rather) a frame with a tall sloping ceiling not unlike one for a tent, but made of a dark, worn wood.

"Holy crap, guys," Sara had said when she first saw it, "This looks amazing."

"Thanks," Iris said proudly, "Just wait until it gets darker."

She was right. Lanterns and strings of lights hung from the wooden frame, lighting up the tables scattered around the edge of a black and white dance floor as the sun was beginning to set.

"You do look beautiful," Leonard told Sara.

"He's right, you do," Avery nodded vigorously.

"Thanks, Avie," Sara chuckled.

"How're the bride and groom doing?"

Sara looked over her shoulder to see Felicity standing behind her chair.

"Good," she smiled as Leonard nodded.

"You're eating?" she asked, "Because at my wedding I was so preoccupied with things I barely ate anything at all."

"You had a whole plate of those stuffed clam things by yourself," Sara reminded her.

"I _know_."

"Aren't you supposed to be up there right now?" Sara asked.

Barry had just given his best man toast, which greatly resembled what he had said to Leonard earlier that day (although he'd left the stuff about his criminal past out, which Leonard couldn't help but be grateful for).

"I'm letting everyone recover," Felicity said before taking a sip from her champagne glass, " 'Kay, I'm gonna go now."

They watched as Felicity made her way to the middle of the dance floor. She tapped the top of the microphone Caitlin handed to her and all heads turned towards her.

"So I think it's my turn now," Felicity said, "Not that I've ever needed permission to talk about how much I love Sara."

She paused for a moment.

"I have known Sara for a long time," she began, "since even before Avery was born, although I bet Sara probably doesn't even remember what that's like."

"I don't," Sara chuckled as everyone laughed.

"Only about a month ago, Sara was giving her maid of honor toast at my wedding, and what she said was perfect and amazing just like everything she does. She told me after that she made it up on the fly because, as she said, when you're in the presence of people who are really, truly in love, talking about it is effortless. You can feel it just being in the room with them. Now, my speech is not on the fly because, as many of you now, I am not the most eloquent person, but being here, I can feel that real, _true_ love Sara was talking about. They make each other happy. I've known Sara for a long time, and this is the happiest I've ever seen her. Thank you, Leonard, for being such a positive force in her life. I wish you both a lifetime of love and happiness."

She nodded and then handed the microphone back to Caitlin.

Sara stood to hug her friend.

"I mean it," Felicity said into her hair.

"I love you so much," Sara said.

"I love you too."

The next half hour was spent sitting around their tables, eating dinner and talking together as seventies and eighties music floated around them.

"Daddy!" Avery gasped as a new song began to play, "It's the song!"

A few weeks earlier, when Leonard was making dinner and Avery was sitting at the counter coloring on pink construction paper, "Let's Stay Together" started playing on the radio.

"This is one of my favorite songs," he had commented as he poured a box of pasta into a pot of boiling water.

Avery looked up from her drawing.

"Really?" she asked. He nodded.

"My mom used to play it a lot when I was around your age."

"Is it from a Disney movie?" she had asked.

"No," he chuckled, "It's Al Green."

Thirty minutes later, Sara returned from work to hear "Let's Stay Together" being played for the eighteenth time, Avery dancing in circles around the living room, singing along with the chorus as Leonard set the table for dinner.

"Come dance with me!" Avery said. She hopped out of Leonard's lap and tugged on his hand, "Daddy, please!"

Sara smiled as Leonard stood up, letting Avery pull him towards the dance floor.

A moment later, Laurel sat down in his empty chair.

"Hey," she said.

"Hi."

"This is all so beautiful," she said, looking around them, "You really didn't hire a wedding planner?"

"Nope," Sara shook her head, "Just a few friends who _really_ didn't want us wasting an opportunity to throw a huge-ass party."

Laurel laughed. Sara looked back to the dance floor where Avery was holding Leonard's hand above her head, twirling around underneath it.

"He seems like a great dad," Laurel said.

"He is," Sara nodded, smiling.

"Let's go dance," she said, taking her sister's hand and pulling her to her feet. Sara followed her to the dance floor, "Remember when I had my first dance in middle school, and that guy asked me to go with him and I was nervous because I'd never slow-danced before—"

"— and you made me practice with you," Sara finished.

"How old even were you then?"

"Probably like eight," she laughed.

They watched Avery twirled in circles, her skirt fluttering around her, until she bumped into her mother's legs.

"Come dance with me, Avie," Sara said, lifting her up

As Leonard watched Sara dance with Avery, Laurel walked over to him.

"Hey, you having fun?"

"This isn't usually my scene," he said, "but yes, I actually am."

"Good," she nodded, "Look, I apologized to Sara, but I think I owe you one too. I'm really sorry I sort of accidentally directed Nate towards you guys. I know he gave you all a hard time."

"It's okay," he nodded, "It's in the process of," he paused, "resolving itself."

Laurel chuckled.

"What?"

"No, it's just that Sara said the same thing."

"She did?"

"Um-hmm," she nodded, "You guys are really great together.

"Avery's dancing with someone and it isn't _me_?" they heard someone explain

They both looked over in time to see Avery run over and jump into Felicity arms, letting her swing her around in circles.

Leonard felt someone grab his hand.

"You wanna dance, Leonard?" Sara asked, a smirk on her lips. Leonard didn't answer, just wrapped his arms around her waist as Sara draped her arms around his neck.

* * *

A half-hour later, Leonard found himself standing on the edge of the dance floor, watching Sara dance with her father and Avery shriek with laughter as Oliver threw her into the air, catching her on the way down.

"Snart."

Leonard turned towards the gruff voice and saw that it belonged to Mick Rory.

"Mick," he said, "You made it."

"I thought you were already married."

"What?"

"All those times we talked about your wife Sara," Mick said.

"I don't think I ever said she was my wife — no, I _know_ I didn't because up until about two hours ago, she wasn't."

"Oh. Well, congratulations either way."

"Thanks."

Neither said anything for a while. They stood, not facing each other, silently looking out onto the dance floor.

"I saw you dancing with your daughter — she is your daughter, right?"

"Yes, she is," he replied, almost chuckling.

"Cute kid. She looks like you."

Leonard didn't know how to respond.

"You're actually doing this?" Mick asked a moment later.

"Doing what?"

"Y'know, the carpools and runny noses and changing diapers."

"Yeah," he replied, not bothering to tell him Avery hadn't worn diapers in years, "I am."

After another moment, Mick said, "I think I'm gonna head out."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Not my crowd. Congratulations again."

"Thanks."

"See you, Snart."

Leonard nodded. He watched Mick's retreating form for a minute before sitting down at the table, content to simply observe the events of the party. Avery was now running around in the field with two of her friends from preschool. Sara was dancing with Felicity and Iris to an upbeat eighties song he knew he'd heard before, but couldn't name.

He thought about what Lisa had said to him earlier about how a wife and a daughter weren't something he'd thought were in the cards for him.

She wasn't wrong.

When he was younger — not quite as young as Avery, more like early teenage years — he'd figured he would probably never end up getting married. His father had often told him, usually as motivation for a job, that women loved a man who had money.

 _Earned_ their money, he'd always thought, not stolen it from banks and museums.

Sure, he'd dated some people, he supposed, both during his years at college and the few after, but after he'd acquired the cold gun and taken on the Captain Cold persona, he'd figured he shouldn't even bother anymore. His morals may be grey at best, but he was certainly not going to lie to someone about who he was, and he didn't think there was anybody on Earth who could possibly deal with who he was, never mind _love_ him.

Yet here he was, at his wedding.

It was actually sort of amazing to him that Sara was able to look past all the things he'd done as Captain Cold. Looking back to the first few months they'd known each other, he'd done some things he wasn't proud of. He'd _threatened_ Avery, he remembered, in the warehouse by the docks. Sara had been pointing a gun at his chest, threatening to undo all the work he'd done to stop Merlyn and the Markov device. That didn't excuse what he'd said.

 _If you want your daughter alive, you won't turn me in._

It was an empty threat, but now, knowing how much he loved Avery, he couldn't believe he'd said it.

And he couldn't believe Sara hadn't skewered him on the spot.

She'd always seen him for more than he thought he could be, even in his darkest moments.

"Daddy!" Avery said, running up to him, "The cupcakes are here!"

"They are?" he asked, "Are they as good as you remember?"

"Yeah!"

Several months ago, Cisco had asked Leonard and Sara to come down to S.T.A.R. Labs for cake testing. They, as part of their crusade to participate in the wedding planning as little as possible while also simultaneously driving Cisco crazy, had dropped Avery off at the lab and told him to go with whatever she picked. After an hour of trying cakes from every gourmet bakery in the area, Avery chose vanilla cupcakes with vanilla frosting. Cisco was irate.

"And," Avery continued excitedly, "I told Cisco that I wanted the frosting to be pink, and guess what!"

"What?" Leonard asked.

"It's pink!"

Judging by what was smeared on Avery's cheeks, Cisco had gone with peach frosting rather than pink to better match his color scheme, but evidently Avery either didn't notice or didn't care.

"Nice choice, Avie," Sara said, running a hand across Leonard's shoulders before she sat next to him, setting a plate of cupcakes on the table, "These are freaking amazing."

"Look, Mommy," Avery said, "I put the flower in my hair."

She turned her head to show the flower messily tucked behind her ear.

"You mean the flower made of frosting?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Great."

They all looked over at the sound of someone tapping on the microphone.

"I hope you're all is having a great time tonight," Felicity said, "If you don't mind, I'd like everyone to follow me."

"What is happening?" Leonard asked Sara.

"I have no idea," she replied, eyebrows furrowed as they got to their feet.

Felicity led everyone past the edge of the wooden structure and out onto the open field. They stopped just before the grass began to slope down into rolling hills.

"Okay," Felicity said, "We all came together to celebrate Len and Sara and we can't do that without mentioning Miss Avery. Avery is the strongest little girl I've ever seen and she's been with her mom and dad every step of the way. I asked her if she wanted to say or do anything special today, and she said the daily bubble."

"I'm gonna cry," Sara said, shaking her head. Leonard wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her towards him.

"The daily bubble is a tradition that Avery and Sara started two years ago," Felicity continued, "Can you tell us about the daily bubble, Avie?"

She lowered the microphone to Avery's height.

"We make a really big bubble and then see how many seconds 'til it pops," she said, "The most we ever got is eleven seconds but we wanna beat it."

"They do it every day, rain or shine," Felicity said, "and today we're going to do the daily bubble with all of you."

Avery took the pink plastic bubble wand Felicity handed her and ran over to her parents.

"Can you do it?" Avery asked, holding the wand out to her mother.

"Yeah," Sara said, blinking back tears as she took the bubble wand.

Leonard picked Avery up, both watching Sara.

She sank the wand into the Tupperware container of soapy water, the same container she had used the day when Avery, two years old at the time, was near-tantrum with boredom and Sara had looked up how to make bubbles and clicked on the first website she saw. They went through a whole container of the stuff before Sara finally said, "that's enough for today. We'll see if we can make them longer tomorrow".

She held the dripping wand in front of her for a moment before lifting it up and pulling it through the air until a beach ball sized bubble formed.

"One," Avery instantly began.

"Two," more people joined her.

"Three."

Sara stood on her toes to kiss Leonard, Avery still in his arms.

"Four." By now nearly everyone was counting.

"Five."

The bubble ebbed and flowed as the wind pushed it across the sky.

"Six."

"I love you, Sara," Leonard murmured as he pulled away.

"Seven."

"I love you too," Sara said, her voice low enough only to be heard by him.

"Eight."

Leonard thought about Felicity's toast, how she echoed the things Lisa and Barry had said to him earlier. They all saw how happy they were, how happy _he_ was.

"Nine."

He held Avery in his arms, feeling Sara lean against his side as they all watched the bubble float over the hills and out towards the trees below. He thought about how lucky he was to be with these people who changed his heart.

"Ten."

And he was.

"Eleven."

Happy.

"Twelve…"

* * *

 **Thank you to everyone who supported this story. It's the first long multi-chapter I've ever done and this little universe truly owns my soul. I promised an alternate ending and I'm going to get it up as soon as possible. There are no words to describe how emotional I am about this story being over. It's the first long multi-chapter I've ever done and this little universe truly owns my soul. I promised an alternate ending and I'm going to get it up as soon as possible. Thank you to everyone who supported this story (and also me). I started this over two years ago as a tiny little one-shot and now here we are. I am beyond grateful.**


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